The World Out There
by Sczion
Summary: Diplomacy had never been Uzumaki Naruto's specialty. Nevertheless, extreme circumstances force him to lead a team of five overseas in order to find out what lies beyond their home. He could only hope it was more peaceful than the last 10 years of their lives...
1. The Universe of Right Here

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Fairy Tail. I also don't have an entertaining way of stating it.**

**Now what better way to celebrate the end of my first round of exams than to publish my first story? I can think of at least twenty things off the top of my head, but regardless. **

**Anywho, the first part of the chapter is basically taken from canon, so you're welcome to skip it if you want to. Still, I'd appreciate a few comments on wether I managed to stay close to canon characterisation or not.**

**Also, if anyone has any doubts with anything on the chapter, please read the author's notes at the bottom of the, since the answer you're looking for may be located there. If it isn't, feel free to share your question on a review. If the answer is there but doesn't satisfy you, feel free to lay into me as well.**

**With that out of the way, enjoy the thing you came here for.**

Erza Scarlet couldn't help but sigh. While, unlike her team mates, she hadn't expected a warm reception from the crowd, the outright hatred they were being showered with surprised her. Yes, Fairy Tail had fallen upon hard times, and yes, their team was second to last in the maze, but still, the five of them were presumed dead for seven years! Didn't that deserve at least a little respect?

The crowd said no.

Nevertheless, she was Titania. It was her duty as the eldest and most mature member of the team to stay calm and reassure her team mates.

Like Lucy, who seemed saddened by the insults, or possibly still worried about Wendy.

"Keep your cool, Lucy" She said in the most reassuring tone she could muster. Considering her friend's unenthusiastic response, it wasn't much. That didn't deter her, though. She pointed at their guidmates in the stands. "All we need is the cheering of our friends."

Lucy didn't look up immediately, but the small smile she showed at the words and the increasingly louder cheers of their friends told the redhead that her attempt at cheering up the celestial mage was successful.

"What's that?" They heard Natsu say. Turning, they followed his gaze, locked onto their supporters.

"No way?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Could that be..." Erza, always calmer, wondered.

It was. Looking exactly as she had on Tenrou Island, Mavis Vermillion, Fairy Tail's founder and first guildmaster, sat near the members of her guild, long blonde hair waving in the air as she kicked her bare feet and yelled out encouragement to the guild's representatives, looking as happy as anyone of her apparent age should be.

The rest of the guild seemed just as shocked to see her.

Sensing their shock at seeing her once again, she explained herself.

"I came to cheer you on." She stated, still smilling cheerfully, and waving off Master Makarov's concerns by stating only those with the mark of Fairy Tail could see her.

Natsu had no such concerns. "Having the first master here looking over us is reassuring!" he laughed.

Erza missed Gray's more controlled agreement as she looked around for the only team to do worse then them on the maze. The announcer, however, interrupted that train of thought.

"Next up... In eighth place in the preliminaries, the hounds of hell's army... Quatro Cerberus!"

One thing she felt surprisingly good about was Quatro Cerberus's attitude. Seven years had passed for everyone but the Tenrou Team, yet the mages of the wildest guild in Fiore still acted the same way. In a world that had changed so much, seeing something so familiar was very reassuring.

What wasn't reassuring, however, was the lack of Bacchus. He'd always been their ace, their one mage who could match her. Why wasn't he on their team? Had he been surpassed by the five she was seeing? Just how strong had the other guilds gotten in their absence?

Once again, the announcer distracted her.

"Coming in seventh place we have the all female guild, the dancers of the deep, Mermaid Heel!"

From what she remembered from Macao's information, Mermaid Heel was formed a few months after Acnologia's attack, but only rose to prominence when their ace, Kagura Mikazuchi, joined three years earlier.

Kagura herself, easily distinguisheable due to her calm and relaxed demeanor, walked in front of her teammates. Mermaid Heel's ace was a slim woman in her early to mid twenties with long, straight dark hair cut in the traditional princess style. She was wearing an elaborate white blazer with a large collar open to reveal a collared shirt and tie underneath, white gloves and a pair of black tights tucked into a pair of thigh-high boots and sitting under a short frilled skirt. On her head was a ribbon, with the ends of the bow pointing straight up, giving them the appearance of animal ears, giving the ensemble a rather odd finishing touch.

The next team's name made her blood run cold, driving away any irritation at yet another interruption to her accessment of a powerful opponent.

"Sixth place is the azure wings that sparkle in the darkness, Blue Pegasus!"

Blue Pegasus's lineup had only one unfamiliar face, and an odd one at that: the Trimens's partner was wearing a bunny costume while giving the same pose as the rest of the team.

At least Ichiya had shown no indication of approaching her yet. Though she didn't have much faith on that lasting.

"Fifth place... the goddess of love and war's secret destroyers, Lamia Scale!"

That shocked her. Team Lamia Scale had one of the Ten Wizard Saints, and Gray's friend Lyon was no pushover either. What kind of powerhouses were the four teams who scored higher?

"Who's that?" Natsu wondered, looking at the girl around Wendy's age that accompanied Jura Neekis, Lyon Vastia, Yuka Suzuki and Toby Horhorta. She had pink hair styled in pigtails held up by orange ribbons and was wearing a mini skirt, a pink, sleeveless top with a dark blue center and a folded collar with yet another orange ribbon tied around it and a heart emblem on the chest, and long gloves.

"Where's the usual 'love' at?" Gray wondered. Lucy, meanwhile, was interested in another team.

"There's a person I've nerver seen before over there, too... Person?!" She yelled, seemingly noticing the Blue Pegasus member in the bunny suit for the first time. Erza reminded herself to have a serious conversation with her blonde friend about letting sleeping dogs lie. Or, in this case, not reminding absentminded Ichiyas of Titania's presence.

Meanwhile, Yuka Suzuki, a petite blue-haired man wearing a green one-tail coat and sporting the thickest eyebrows she'd ever seen on anyone, was introducing the little girl to the rest of Team Fairy Tail.

"Chelia is Sherry's little cousin." He stated calmly.

"Ooooonnn, she's really strong." The dog-like Toby Horhorta added.

"Yeah, my 'love' still isn't nearly enough." Chelia agreed, clearly not paying attention to the conversation, something Toby wasn't pleased with.

"I was complimenting you!" And he made that very clear.

"Ah, I'm sorry Toby!" She yelled out, scared. Yuka sighed and tried to play peacemaker.

Erza couldn't help but smile as she saw the members of the different guilds interact with each other as if they were all old friends.

At least until Ichiya noticed her.

"Okay then, in that case, I'll have a taste of Erza-san!" He yelled out enthusiatically, hearts in his eyes as he sniffed her. Her reaction was the same as always.

"Quit... it!" She stammered out in embaressment, trying to push him away. He remained unfazed.

"Mmmm... A lovely perfume, as always." He stated in what might have felt like a flattering tone coming from anyone else. As it was, she was just wondering if he'd go away if she punched him.

No, wait, she'd tried that tactic before. Darn it.

"Moving on, coming in fourth place we have... Now this is quite a surprise, in fourth place we hava a first time competing guild! The midnight raiders, Raven Tail!"

"Raven Tail?!" Natsu yelled, echoing all of Fairy Tail's surprise.

"That's Master's son's, Ivan, guild." Erza stated for the benefit of those who didn't know about it.

"But... That means..." Lucy started, understanding the implications of that.

Master Makarov, meanwhile, was raging in the stands about Raven Tail beeing a dark guild, spreading confusion among the spectators.

"Well, according to our official information, Raven Tail existed over seven years ago." The announcer started, hoping to defuse the tension. "But had only been approved as an official guild recently."

"If they're approved by the Council, then that means they're not a dark guild, right?" Former councilman Yajima added, trying to bury the controversy for good.

"Fairy Tail..." A voice stated, causing the whole team to turn around, seeing Raven Tail.

"That little girl was our way of saying hello." The same voice spoke, allowing them to identify the owner as a tall figure with blue hair and wearing golden armor and a dark furred cape. The man's face was covered by a golden mask, slightly triangular in the bottom and shaped like a trident from the nose up.

The small goblin-like creature on the right shoulder of the odd-looking man next to the speaker let out a sound similar to a giggle.

Fairy Tail was furious.

"You're the ones... who did that to Wendy..." Natsu started, getting angrier by the second, "I won't forgive you!" He yelled out, examplefying their team's anger at the man better than anyone else ever could.

The ravens seemed unfazed by the dragon slayer's proclamation, turning away from Fairy Tail and leaving for another spot after a parting 'Enjoy the festival' from the armored man.

No else had heard the confession, sadly, and thus were more worried about who the two guilds left besides Sabertooth were.

"It seems like two more powerful guilds are still hiding." Gray whispered from besides her.

She understood where he was headed. "I wonder if they have anything to do with that mysterious energy Jellal mentioned?"

"Here we go! The team who came in third in the preliminaries... Well, now... This is definitely unexpected! Could the flapping of their fallen wings really carry them all the way here?!" The announcer stated, hoping to milk the suspense for all it was worth. "It's the least expected... The unbelievable..."

The team came out, surprising everyone.

"Fairy Tail B Team!"

Erza didn't see Mirajane, Gajeel, Juvia or Laxus. No, her eyes were firmly fixed on the man completly covered by cloth except for his eyes. Only one man had ever dressed like that, and he was currently on an alternate dimension.

He was, however, that dimension's counterpart of someone she knew very well.

"It can't be... Are you... Jellal...?" She asked, hopeful.

The 'Shhh' she got in response was all the answer she needed.

"Seriously!" Gray and Natsu yelled simultaneously.

While that was happening, agressive mutterings went on by in the crowd about why Fairy Tail had two teams.

Natsu let everyone know that he also had no clue about what was happening with a loud yell.

The announcer picked up on the confusion, "Well, it seems as if there's a lot of people still confused over the new revisions to the rules this year, don't you think, Yajima-san?"

"That's right... This year, each guild can have not just one, but two teams enter into the tournament."

That little tidbit of information could have been useful to know, a sentiment Lucy echoed as the master taunted his colleagues due to having two teams in the finals.

After a brief debate between the announcer, Yajima and guest commentator Jenny Realight from Blue Pegasus over the pros and cons of having two teams in the finals, Natsu and Gajeel made a point of leaving it clear that the two Fairy Tail teams would fight each other as hard as they would anyone else. While that was happening, Erza approached the disguised Jellal.

"Je... Mystogan... You..." She started, not sure how to convey her worry for him.

"Master is a really understanding told him about our situation, and he was more than happy to consent to this." He said, hoping to dissuade her worries.

No such luck.

"You said you weren't able to get near the event grounds, didn't you?"

"That was before I thought of this idea."

"That is still against the rules. You're not a guild member." Same old Erza, still a sticker for the rules. She really hadn't changed.

Then again, from her perspective, it had only been three months since Acnologia's attack, not seven years, so it was only natural.

"Anyway, haven't you heard? For all our purposes, Mystogan and I are the same person."

"Anyway, don't get so worked up, this is a 'festival', isn't it?" Laxus said, appearing out of nowhere and putting an arm over Jellal's shoulder, "Right, Mystogan?"

"Exactly, Erza." The bluenette replied, silently thankful at beeing seconded like that. _'Who knew Laxus could be such a pal?'_ He thought.

"And watch it... Mystogan is a lot less talkative, remember?" Any annoyance Erza might have felt at the blonde for enabling Jellal's irresponsability and interrupting their talk vanished with those words.

It would return, though. And then those two would have a lot more in common with Natsu and Gray.

As her old friend walked past her, he whispered, "... So... Have you noticed anything yet?"

"Raven Tail seems a bit suspicious, but apart from that, nothing." She answered in the same pitch.

"That's the guild that came out before us, right? Their magical presence feels diferent than it was in previous years."

"Have you felt the 'mysterious presence' yet?"

"Not the one I told you about, but there are five odd ones somewhere in the stadium. They don't feel dark, mind you." He added quickly before she could jump to conclusions,"But they're unlike anything I've ever felt before."

"Should we be worried?"

"Not necessarily, but it never hurts to be on your toes. My team already knows. You should tell yours as well." He advised before walking away, doing his best to keep his cover intact. She still didn't like it, but there was nothing she could do.

With the Team B issue cleared up, everyone was ready for the introduction of the last two teams. The news of each guild being able to have more than one team on the finals, however had convinced almost everyone that the two final teams were from Sabertooth, the number one guild in all of Fiore.

"And now it's time to introduce the second team to clear the maze! They are the strongest! The invincible! The complete dominators! The number one guild in all of Fiore! They! Are! SAAABERTOOTH!" The announcer yelled out with enthusiasm he'd yet to show that evening.

That it was a team from Sbertooth was unsurprising. That it was a team composed of the best of Sabertooth, as the Twin Dragons's presence attested, however, was _very _surprising.

Once again, the crowd and competitors started muttering. Who could number one be? Who could have done better then Sabertooth's best?

These questions kept the audience member's attention so much that many of them forgot to cheer for their favorite guild. The lack of the support they expected, in turn, seemed to leave the few Team Sabertooth members who cared about that in an even worse mood than coming in second did.

Ironically, the fact that someone bested Sabertooth completely overshadowed Sabertooth itself.

"Ah, I can see that everyone is wondering who could have possibly topped them, huh?" The announcer started, hoping to wave off Sabertooth's lack of support. It was bad for business. "Well then, wonder no more! The last team in the finals of the X791 Grand Magic Games is participating for the first time ever. Their presence was requested by the king himself, and his wish to see them fight many opponents is the reason there are ten teams in the finals instead of eight." He said, taking a dramatic pause to feed the crowd's curiosity.

It didn't just work on the crowd. The competitors were also wondering what kind of team could catch the king's own eyes. Some, like Natu, couldn't wait for a chance to fight them. Others were more analythical.

_'Could those be the odd presences Jellal felt?' _Erza wondered. Anyone who could gain the king's favor like that had to be unique.

"Be prepared, for they are a sight never before seen in Fiore!" He said with another dramatic pause, clearly enjoying the attention. "You see, the sole remaining team is from overseas!" He yelled out in excitement.

The crowd didn't agree. In fact, many of them seemed more angry at having foreigners in the tournament than anything.

Erza herself was trying to figure out what was going on. She didn't recall any mention of land overseas. A few miles off the coast there was a ring of treacherous waters not even the most desperate pirates dared to brave. Why would anyone go through that?

"These five were sent as diplomats by the lands known as the 'Elemental Nations' and, upon meeting the king, agreed to participate in this tournament as a show of friendship and trust! Since they're from a whole different continent, they're also bound to possess abilities we've never seen before! So, give a warm welcome to... Team United Shadows!"

Erza felt rather sorry for the five figures who entered the stadium. The crowd still hadn't forgiven them for being foreigners who'd defeated their home's heroes.

Still, at least there was someone who got even less cheers than Fairy Tail.

-OoO-

Kankuro sighed. He'd been prepared for the crowd's hostility, but apparently that didn't apply to the whole team. Karui seemed ready to attack a few members of the audience for their comments. Chojuro was intimidated, looking rather confused and out of place, as he always did whenever the Mizukage was in no imediate danger. At least that meant the Kumo jonin would probably notice him and start berating him for 'being a coward' soon, as she had taken to doing during the boat ride.

Naruto called her a tsundere. Never to her face after the first time, though.

Speaking of Naruto, he was trying to calm Kurotsuchi down while the Iwa kunoichi complained about is poor choice in names.

She was probably faking it, though. That girl just loved messing with the blonde. He would have suspected something if she wasn't happily married already.

Thinking of marriage caused the puppeteer to rub his own wedding ring. Darn, he really missed his wife. The short visits Naruto took him on with Hiraishin during the six months they'd been on the mission weren't nearly enough. Maki had really been a blessing to his life.

She was even worth having Naruto call him whipped. Or Temari joining in on the ribbing. Or Gaara throwing in his two scents.

Gaara... That made him think about Suna. He knew they were all worried for their villages, which was why Naruto had used Hiraishin so much during the trip.

It was really progressive, how the major villages allowed someone who'd proven himself able to destroy armies on his own to plant teleporting beacons on their gates.

Beacons that were ready to be used by this team in the very likely event of a rehash of the Fifth War after the weakening the Great Villages had suffered during the Sixth.

Hoping to distract himself from that train of thought, the Kazekage's brother turned back to their appointed leader for this mission, who seemed to be acessing the competion alongside the Tsuchikage's daughter. His friend really had changed.

Granted, three wars over ten years were bound to do so for everyone involved, but still, not many had been hit harder by the conflicts than Naruto. How the blonde could be as carefree as he was was a mystery.

-OoO-

After finally managing to stop Kurotsuchi's complaining, Naruto turned to study the competition, the Iwa kunoichi accompanying him. His eyes went from team to team, studying stances and expressions in order to judge the biggest threats. He recognized most of them from the materials they'd made a point of reading to prepare themselves for this. This tournament was just too important to lose.

The materials seemed correct. From what he could see of their stances and what he could feel in this 'proto Sage Mode' the energy in the atmosphere allowed to enter faster then usual at the cost of the aura and its physical benefits, the biggest threats were exactly so.

One thing the materials also weren't wrong about were the breast sizes. Seriously, were these women all related to Tsunade? It was like he'd fallen in one of his sensei's (and now his as well) novels! Hell, just seeing them all gave him material for at least two more books!

"What do you think, Namikaze?" Kurotsuchi's question brought him back to focus. Iwa nin insisted on calling him Namikaze, even though he never went by the name. He had no idea why, as they refused to answer when he asked.

He wouldn't put it past her to convince them to do it just to mess with him.

Looking at her serious expression, he understood the answer she was looking for.

"From what I can sense, the materials seem correct." He answered, no traces of the playfulness from before present in his voice. "Lamia Scale's little girl also has a high amount of sheer power, more than nearly anyone. Sabertooth's unknown is untrained in physical combat, but she has a high amount of energy as well. There's something odd about the armored man from Raven Tail, but I can't figure out what. The rest of his team have reserves of around a mid level jonin."

His whole team had stopped to listen to the information, completely ignoring the hostile crowd. All five of them standing there in their respective jonin uniforms brought him memories of the Fourth War, both good ones and not so much.

Against all odds, the real Uchiha Madara was driven away when, in an unlikely gambit, the seven Tailed Beasts inside the shell of their progenitor managed to temporarily impose their combined will to attack him. That, combined with Kakashi's, Gai's, Kirabi's and his own efforts forcing Obito to rely on Izanagi again, lead to the two Uchihas's retreat. Unfortunately, taking away their younger enemy's last Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, thus removing his **Kamui (Authority of the Gods)** from the equation, was offset by Gyuki's, the Eight-Tailed Giant Ox, capture.

After returning to base camp and learning of what happened to the five kage, it was decided that Naruto would spend the night in Mt. Myoboko in order to refine his control over his new jinchuriki powers. After leaving a few clones to detect any transformed White Zetsu that may try to attack during his absence, the jinchuriki left, carrying a few scrolls on new jutsu that may be needed and the hopes of many.

He liked to think he didn't dissapoint.

Copious use of his signature **Taj****u**** Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**** (Mass Shadow Clone Technique)**, to unprecedented levels due to having Kurama's full cooperation, allowed him to accomplish his objectives and arrive at dawn, just as the day's battles began.

It was a good day, all things considered. The kage fought Madara again. Better prepared, and following Nara Shikaku´s brilliant strategy, they managed to give him a much more even battle. In the end, however, the Tsuchikage was forced to use the **Shiki Fujin (Dead Demon Consuming Seal)** to save his colleagues. And so, the famed Onoki of Both Scales, Third Tsuchikage, died while expressing his faith in the newer generations, taking with him the strongest shinobi since the Sage of Six Paths himself.

Naruto, meanwhile, had his fated battle with his former best friend Sasuke. It was nothing like their extremely even clash four years earlier at the Valley of the End, however. Back then, none of them had much experience with their abilities. By the Fourth War, however, things had changed. While Sasuke had only had his perfect Sharingan for a few days, Naruto had accumulated years of training in his Yang Chakra Mode thanks to his clones. Combined with the fact that the full power of the strongest Tailed Beast was already much more than what the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan could give (as even Obito, a much more experienced user of the eyes, had to resort to more indirect methods to fight it), the youngest Uchiha's straighforward strategy didn't stand a chance. Nevertheless, the blonde refused to give up on the one he considered a brother. They argued, fought and then argued some more until finally, after four gruelling hours, Sasuke understood. He understood that Naruto would not give up on him. He understood what Itachi had sacrificed so much for. He understood that all of Konoha wasn't to blame for the Uchiha Massacre. He also understood that it was too late for him.

Obito then appeared, having replaced his missing eye with Nagato's other one and looking to take advantage of the blonde's exaustion. He didn't count, however, on facing two opponents. Sasuke realized that the man in front of him was responsible for what happened to his clan. And so, for the last time, the two rivals teamed up. Without **Kamui** and with the incomplete Ten Tails still unstable, Obito stood no chance. In the end, Sasuke also used the **Shiki Fujin**, telling Naruto that he had done too much to be able to live normally again, and that his life was better spent making sure his clansman could not be brought back. He also informed him of his and his brother's battle with Kabuto and the revival of Orochimaru. Lastly, with a true smile on his face, Uchiha Sasuke died, ironically not feeling any hatred for the first time in his life.

With all three Uchiha dead and no one left to control the White Zetsu, it seemed like the war was finally over. Sadly, Yakushi Kabuto did not agree. Having broken out of Izanami, he proceed to strike down his former master, absorb him and resummon the revived shinobi Itachi had forced him to dismiss. As a bonus, Itachi himself was one of these, and without Shisui's eye, there was no chance of him breaking out of the madman's control again. Kabuto's first order to the Uchiha was to bring back Nagato's soul from the dimension he'd imprisioned it in. A quick sacrifice later, and the fully rejuvenated God of Ame was back in his service. He then sent his forces after the unprepared armies.

The slaughter was even more brutal the second time around. Not only was the united army caught unaware, but the enemies had increased, with the remaining dead kage as well as Orochimaru, Hoshigaki Kisame and, to Naruto's dismay, Mitarashi Anko, Yamato, Kirabi and his godfather Jiraya joining the horde. It was also when people close to him started dying.

Lee was killed by Nagato. In his grief, Gai had opened all eight chakra gates, using their power to overwhelm the Rinnegan user and seal him, along with all the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist except Kisame and Zabuza with the **Shiki Fujin**.

Ei, the Fourth Raikage, and his servant Dodai were next. Dodai was killed by a punch from the Third Raikage and Ei died using the **Shiki Fujin** on his father, brother and even predecessors, the First and Second Raikages. A few days later, the **Yoton (Lava Release)** user was on the enemy's side. Nara Shikaku, who was basically filling the spot anyway, was named Supreme Commander.

Mifune, the leader of the samurai, couldn't survive the Second Mizukage's **Joki Boi (Steaming Danger Tyranny)**.

Choji was killed by the Third Kazekage's Iron Sand. Naruto knew he'd never forget the sight of his friend's mangled and barely recognisable corpse.

Sai had managed to seal away Pakura, Gari, Haku, Chukichi and Toroi with his special seal, proving himself the only alternative to pyrrhic victories. Unfortunately, this made him an important target, so Yamato had been sent to deal with him. He did, but the former Root operative managad to seal him before dying of bloodloss.

Tsunade used the **Shiki Fujin **on the First Kazekage and Tsuchikage, her lover Dan, as well as, to his despair, Jiraya. Seeing his godmother and father figures get dragged to the shinigami's stomach together broke him. He spent a few days without interacting with anyone before Sakura and Ino snapped him out of it.

And then there was Sakura. Her death had happened near the end of the war. By then, Kabuto, who had moved to a different location after absorbing his former master, had stopped sending more than one servant in the same place in order to avoid repeats of Gai, Ei and Tsunade's sacrifices. Medic-nin were working overtime to treat the many wounded. It was nearly impossible to walk on a battlefield without stepping on a corpse. Sakura was on the field when Zabuza ambushed her unit. None of them made it. The blonde himself barely made it past the depression her death caused. Ino had to snap (and slap) him out of it again.

In the end, it was clear that killing Kabuto was the only way to end it. So he did. After days of trying to track him down, Naruto finally fought the madman.

Even so, it wasn't easy.

Naruto may have had Sage Mode and the power of the strongest Tailed Beast on his side, but Kabuto had something else: the fruits of his and Orochimaru's research. The research on bloodlines had taken off, with the traitor throwing all elements and subelements at him while wearing the Rinnegan and bones spouted from every bit of skin that wasn't covered by a Sharingan. Combined with Karin's healing, Suigetsu's ability to turn into water and Jugo's ability to absorb nature energy allowing him to stay in his own Sage Mode indefinetly, Kabuto was an incredible opponent. An incredible opponent bent on insuring his name would always be remembered by destroying the Five Great Nations. An incredible opponent who, in the end, was very similar to himself.

Nevertheless, after two long days, the fourtieth Sharingan eye finally closed and Yakushi Kabuto was dead. When he finally left the man's hideout, the Allied Forces had managed to create a counter seal for the mind control formula. A few Kurama-reinforced shadow clones, and many battles against some of the best the shinobi world had ever produced, later and the Fourth Shinobi World War was over after two devastating months.

A few months later, he teamed up with the kage and the revived shinobi, sans those belonging to Akatsuki, whom had been sealed through the usual methods, to defeat and destroy the incomplete Ten Tails, thus freeing Kurama's siblings from their prison. Their mission over, the revived shinobi departed to the afterlife after expressing their faith in him and the future of the world.

The Tailed Beasts reinforced that sentiment a few weeks later. Kurama had been carefully extracted while the best medics kept Naruto stable and healthy throughout the three days the process required. Two days after the fox was freed, the united army watched as the toads lead the beasts to the Summoning Realm, where they could live peacefully and away from human interference.

The very next day, he was promoted to jonin.

With Kitsuchi as Fourth Tsuchikage, Darui as Fifth Raikage and Kakashi as Sixth Hokage, it seemed as if a new era of peace was at hand. Foreign ninja visiting became a common sight everywhere. It was called "a never ending golden age". After all, the Five Great Nations had started all previous wars. With such heavy losses, there was no way anyone would want to go through something like that again, right?

The announcer's voice snapped him out of it. "Thank you for waiting! Here is your lineup!" He yelled out, pointing towards a giant board thad had risen out of the ground. "The Grand Magic Games's program has been unveiled!"

A low murmur soon started to spread as the teams started commenting the schedule amongst each other.

"So, an unknown challenge and a battle every day. Three single battles and a tag battle before the unknown event in the fifth day. What do you guys think?" Kankuro asked.

"Feeling ready to pummel a few bastards, thats how." Karui declared, cracking her knuckles with an eager smile.

"Y-you shouldn't be so bl-bloodthirsty, K-Karui-san..." Chojuro muttered, clearly intimidated by her display. He may have grown a lot more confident than he used to be, but the redhead always brought out the meeker side of him.

"You should be more bloodthirsty!" She answered, "Just because we're being forced into this doesn't mean we can't enjoy testing our strength against these people. Don't be so scared all the time!"

Naruto could have mentioned how it was technically her fault, but that would end the entertainment. So, instead, he just agreed with her.

"Karui has a point. Even if the king goes back on his word or we don't win, a strong showing can still accomplish our goal. It's a lot easier to go all out if you enjoy it." He advised the swordsman, who nodded but still stepped away from the dark-skinned female.

Whenever he saw this interaction, which had been very often in the last six months, he couldn't believe Chojuro was part of the same group Zabuza and Kisame had also been members of. He also had nearly nothing in common with Suigetsu and Ao, the only other members of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist he'd met personally.

"How can you ignore the idiots so easily anyway, masochist? You used to get just as pissed as I did about things like that back when you were learning from Raikage-sama with Omoi." Naruto sighed. Ever since their first meeting, when he'd allowed her to beat him up, she'd always called him that.

"I helped raise a kid." He anwered nevertheless, having long since given up on trying to change that. Instead, his thoughts turned towards Kurenai's child. While little Hitomi was already past the 'waking people up three times a night' phase when he started helping out with her, she was still very dependant and scared her precious people would leave her. He couldn't blame her. Growing up without a father and losing her older brother figure at the age of three was rough on anyone.

He could never forget her face after he, her mother and Ino explained to her that 'Shika-nii' wouldn't be visiting ever again. He promised himself that day that he'd never let her look that way again. Using Hiraishin so much in order to visit her at least once a week was tiring, but worth it.

"As far as the matches go, this is how the points will be distributed from first through tenth place. As the rankings fall, the amount of points received decreases." The announcer said as the writing on the board changed, depicting the scores. First place got ten points, second nine points, third eight points, fourth seven points, fifth six points, sixth five points, seventh four points, eighth two points, ninth one point and tenth zero points.

"For the contest part, you can choose anyone from your guild to participate. For the following battle part, the organisers will pair up cards selected from the fan's votes."

"So it's possible to have two matches in one day..." Kurotsuchi muttered in thought. Times like these reminded him that behind the woman who loved to mess with him and had once threatened to kill him ten years earlier even though their villages had just become allies was an elite jonin and the leading candidate for the title of Fifth Tsuchikage.

"The battle part's rules are simple. Each team will battle, like so." The announcer said, pointing towards the board where it showed that each team would only have one battle. "The winning team will receive ten points, the losing team will receive none. If it's a draw, each team will receive five points."

"Without further ado, I bring you the Great Magic Games's opening game!"

**Author's note: If the Fourth War recount seems a little forced to you, that's because I just wanted to get it out before the next Naruto chapter, which I'm sure will wreck my view. Now it's out there though, and before canon, so I won't feel obligated to change it.**

**For those of you who care, yes, the Fifth and Sixth Wars will be explored. And they happened because I honestly find them to be the Fourth War's logical conclusions.**

**That's all for now. Take care guys.**


	2. Hiding in the Details

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Fairy Tail. I also don't know why Sting is the 'White Dragon Slayer' when he's clearly using the Light element.**

**Author's note: Well, here we are again for the second chapter of **_**The World Out There**_** (title susceptible for change if I can think of a better one). I want to thank all of you for taking the time to read chapter one, and hope you'll enjoy this chapter as much as you seem to have enjoyed the first.**

**As you may have noticed, I left out the descriptions of Team United Shadows. It happened because I wanted to get it out before this week's Naruto chapter (which, as I expected, sort of shattered my view) and also because I wanted to add another mystery to the story, along with what happened in the Fifth and Sixth wars, Shikamaru's death, what happened to the ones I didn't mention, why they're being forced to fight in the tournament and why they're in Fiore in the first place. I'll hold onto each member's detailed descriptions until it's time for their individual fights. **

**Also, the warning last chapter about checking the author's notes at the bottom before reviewing since your questions may be answered there is valid for the whole story, as well as any others I publish.**

**With that out of the way, enjoy the chapter._**

"Let's begin Hidden!" The announcer said in an excited voice Karui had already grown to hate, if her angry mutterings were any indication. Some may have dismissed her as extremely violent and quick to anger from how she'd been acting, but he knew better. Kumo had been hit particularly hard by the Sixth War due to the resentment the Fourth Raikage's trigger-happy attitude caused. The crowd's jeering was simply bringing up uncomfortable and painful memories of those days for her, causing her to resort to anger as a coping mechanism.

"Hey now." He started, putting his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to calm her down. "I understand, but you'll have to calm down, okay? You're safe here. We're all here for you." He continued, giving her a reassuring smile and speaking in the softest tone he could muster. She seemed surprised for a second before taking a deep breath and giving him a grateful nod. He was the only other one in the team to have seen the hate Kumo nin were thrown during that war, so he was the only one to understand what she was going through. He was the only other one to have seen what the daymio's forces did to prisioners. Despite not going through it herself, she'd lost quite a few friends to those monsters.

"Naruto-san is right, Karui-san. We'll stick together and help each other no matter what! We're all comrades here, so we'll protect each other until the end!" Chojuro declared, looking more confident than he had since the start of the mission. The others, who'd never seen this side of him before, stood there, gaping at the usually meek swordsman's bout of confidence.

Naruto merely smiled. This was the Chojuro he'd fought alongside so many times before, the one who put fear in the hearts of any enemies of Kirigakure, the 'Master of a Thousand Weapons'. The Chojuro that the unfamiliar territory, the uncertainty of the future and Karui's intimidating presence had kept beneath the surface these past six months.

The shock had passed, and Kurotsuchi and Kankuro were smilling proudly at their comrade from the Mist while giving the redhead reassuring nods as well. Said redhead had her head down in embarassment, and he swore he could see a slight blush on her cheeks as well.

Huh. Looked like someone had a bit of a crush. And on a man she was always berating, no less. She really was a tsundere.

Nevertheless, he couldn't help but smile. He'd never intervened in any of his team mate's interactions, wanting them to develop their own relationships with each other. After all, aside from the two women being part of the same division during the Fourth War, none of these four had ever fought together. Only he had fough alongside each of them, during the times he'd been lent - or, as Inuzuka Hana put it,' pimped out' - to other villages for his army-killing abilities and the fact that he accepted aprentticeships as paying methods.

He dreaded to think of Hana and Kurotsuchi ever meeting. Those two together could easily destroy any intimidating reputation he had. And they'd have fun doing it, too.

"Each team will have one participant. After each team submits their player, I'll explain the rules" Tha announcer stated in a more controlled tone.

"Hidden gives the indication that it's some sort of competion involving stealth." Kankuro, always the most analythical, started.

"That means any of us would do well." Kurotsuchi finished. Those two got along well from day one. Not only were they the only married ones on the team, but they also had similar calculative and focused personalities, as beffiting of the eldest members of the team. The Iwa nin, however, was much more outgoing, and enjoyed ribbing her new friend almost as much as she did him.

Now was not the time to think about that, however. He was team leader, after all.

"I doubt that's all there is to it, though. Since I'm the one who's branched out the most, if anyone has a jutsu that works well in the challenge, it's probably gonna be me. I'll go." He said, looking every bit the hardened warrior the last ten years had made him.

"Fine, Namikaze, but you better not hold back!" Kurotsuchi said in her own form of support.

"She's right, masochist! Give them hell!" Karui agreed.

"Go Naruto-san!" Chojuro said as well.

Enthusiastic talking wasn't Kankuro's style, so he simply gave him a nod to show his agreement and support.

"Will each team's participant for 'Hidden' please come forward." The judge, who looked like some sort of ... pumpkin(?) asked.

Seriously, how had he not noticed that before?

"Oh, it seems like United Shadows is starting strong! They've sent out their ace, Naruto Uzumaki!" The announcer yelled out in what seemed like honest excitement. It was still weird, having his name spelled like that. Even after three months, they still hadn't gotten completely used to how family names were said last in Fiore. "Now we're just waiting for Titan Nose's representative to step forward."

Naruto turned towards the last team to cross the maze. Currently, it seemed as if a tall and muscled man around his own age wearing nothing but green boots and shorts and with pale skin and rusty-red short spiky hair and beard was arguing with a busty woman of tan skin, long green hair and slim figure who was wearing a simple t-shirt and jeans and who was about a head shorter than him. Both had their guild marks, two half circles pointing away from each other and connected on only one point, on their right arms. Sensing that their argument was now public, the man said one last sentence to the woman with a much softer expression than before. Whatever it was, it left her shocked and gave him enough time to step forward as their guild's representative.

"And finally, they've chosen the big man Olan!" The announcer yelled again.

Naruto, meanwhile, had taken to examining the rest of the competition.

First was Gray Fullbuster from Fairy Tail A. He had spiky black hair, dark blue eyes and wore an unbuttuned purple coat with the Fairy Tail mark on the left side and over a white shirt with a yellow line running through it vertically, a belt and black pants. From what few intel he'd managed to dig up on him, he used some sort of ice magic, had a penchant for stripping no matter the location and had been a candidate for the S-Rank before his disappearance seven years previously. He was also very good at keeping himself under the radar, as that was all a whole team of the some of the likeliest candidates for the next generation of kages was able to find about him.

Next was Juvia Lockser from Fairy Tail B. She was a real beauty, with long wavy blue hair, dark blue eyes, pale skin, a very curvy figure and wearing long black dress with yellow buttons and white fur on the sleeves and collar. Long brown boots, a brown belt and a black cossack hat which ended in white fur and had a butterfly-shaped yellow hairclip attached. Her lovely appearance hid the power a water mage who'd been one of the top fighters of what at the time was the second strongest guild in Fiore. Underestimating her would certainly have disastrous consequences.

Next to her was Lyon Vastia of Lamia Scale. He was a slim man of average height with spiky bluish silver hair, slanted eyes and linear, dark eyebrows. He wore a short, high-collared tunic, dark in color and with light edges and cuffs, together with many decorative motifs on the lower part of the chest and sleeves and with the collar left slightly open. His shoulders were covered by a dark mantle with a high collar and light, jagged edges matching his tunic. Dark pants with light parts circling the thighs and grey boots completed the ensemble. The second strongest mage of the second strongest guild in Fiore was known for using **Aisu Meiku **(**Ice-make)** magic, mostly as animated animal statues, much like the ice users of Yukigakure, but also as weapons and other objects. Based on his familiar interactions with Gray Fullbuster, they might have even trained together. That raised the odds of the black-haired enigma being an ice-make user as well, but not enough to bank on.

Next was the odd-looking Nullpuding. He was a short, stocky, visibly hunched and yet quite well-built man with blond hair, which is kept slicked back, with a widow's peak and prominent sideburns. He had violet skin, a massive head, round black eyes, a flat nose and a black goatee on his massively bulbous chin, which split into two points. He seemed to always carry a wide smirk on his face, showing his clenched teeth. Nullpuding's torso and head were quite large in comparison to his thinner arms and legs. Draped over Nullpuding's hunched back was a white cloth acting as a cape, with two large, red motifs reminiscent of stylized suns adorning its sides. Nullpuding's chest was wrapped in bandages, under which he seemed to wear a dark shirt with sleeves reaching down below his elbows, where they ended in large, bolted armbands. His outfit was completed by a pair of dark olive pants, held up by a light, bolted belt, and simple shoes. That was all the information he had on him. There hadn't been enough time to establish a rapport on the underworld circles Raven Tail clearly moved in, so they'd had to stick with the lack of information on the official channels. He didn't like it, but such was life.

Quatro Cerberus's Yaeger was a massive mountain of man, with ridiculously thick arms and torso, long straight silver hair tied in a ponytail, white fingerless gloves, a red spiked collar around his neck, black earmuffs on his head, a blue belt holding up two large pocket bags around his waist, red pants and simple dark blue shoes. A plant mage. Not much more was known about him. He wasn't the kind of man the media liked, it seemed.

Eve Tearm from Blue Pegasus was slim blonde man with long, wavy and slightly messy hair and large dark eyes. He wore a short-sleeved shirt left untucked over dark suit pants complementing the tie around his neck, covered in light and dark diagonal stripes, and dark shoes. Member of the popular Trimens, he was a former knight for the Council and now a user of snow magic. He found it odd that ice and snow magic were considered different subjects whereas they were both part of the **Hyoton (Ice Release)** chakra nature in the Elemental Nations. Just one of those little differences between the two ways of fighting.

Beth Vanderwood from Mermaid Heel was a petite young girl with orange-brown hair tied in two braided pigtails on either side of her head. She had a childlike and innocent look to her, possessing very large, almost round greyish blue eyes and freckled cheeks. Beth was shown wearing a black T-shirt with a white collar line under a pair of calf length greyish blue overalls, covering her torso and reaching up below her armpits, held up by shoulder straps and a pair of red sandals on her feet. She also used plant magic.

Finally, there was Rufus Lohr of Sabertooth, a slim young man of average height with very long, straight blond hair, reaching down below his back, gathered near the end and tied in a small ponytail by a large, dark band. A red mask covered the top face except for his dark eyes and forehead. He wore a long red vest with a white shirt underneath, an extremely large, flimsy cravat tie of the same color, brown pants, long black boots and a crimson hat with a long and spiky pink plumage that almost reached below his back. Sabertooth's representative wielded an extremely rare form of magic known as **Memori Meiku (Memory Make)**, which, according to what he'd read, allowed him to memorize any kind of magic he saw and instantly be proficient in its usage. Not only that, but by making himself forget a particular spell, he could force the same onto any target he desired. It was basically the Sharingan on steroids. Even the Uchiha's famed doujutsu required practice after memorizing the required hand seals. And it couldn't make an opponent forget how to block, either.

Nevertheless, combined with Olan's sound magic, they made for quite the interesting group.

"What the heck _are_ you?" Gray Fullbusters's voice broke him out of his reverie. The ice mage was adressing the judge. Huh, it seemed like great minds thought alike.

"Exactly what I look like." It(?) said, not appearing bothered by the question. "I'm a pumpkin!"

"Huh, was there something wrong with me asking?" Gray asked, sweatdroping.

"It looks like a pumpkin to me, too." The blue haired beauty said.

"Errr... Nevermind."

"We see it every year, so we didn't really notice." Eve commented.

"I think it's probably part of the organisers." Beth added.

"Good work on your character design." The two complimented simultaneously.

"Non, non, I had a lot of fun doing it, so it was no problem. Pumpkii~." The judge said bashfully. Assuming it... him... her... whatever could even feel bashful, that is.

"Don't start overdoing your character now." Fairy Tail's ice mage deadpanned. Naruto liked him already. As a matter of fact, he was enjoying the friendly atmosphere. It wasn't like the Chunin Exams, where everyone was wary since the one next to them could very well end up killing them (and, in fact, had probably been ordered to focus on eliminating any future threats to their village). Here, it was more of a friendly competition between close acquaintances.

And then Nullpuding shattered that view.

"Excuse just a moment please... We still haven't been informed about what kind of contests we're going to be taking part in today. In fact... All of the contests are being kept secret... But regardless of what it might be, having two guildmates competing, Fairy Tail has a huge advantage, right?"

"That's just how it goes. The fact that two teams from the same guild made it all the way to the finals is nothing short of amazing." The pumpkin creature answered.

"I'm fine with it." Rufus's calm voice drew everyone's attention. "A little tune from the banks of my memory. I guarantee that having two of you competing... Ultimately will not be what you'd call advantageous,"

Naruto mentally snorted. He'd love to hear the thought process behind _that_ one, because it was one of the stupider statements he'd ever heard. Granted, numerical advantage hadn't helped the Great Village's enemies during the three wars he'd been in, but still, this was a completely different situation.

Nevertheless, Yaeger, Beth and Olan had already expressed their agreement with the judge. Might as well throw in his two cents.

"Having two members in this event is an advantage, yes, but it's one they earned, just as any other guild could have managed if their B teams had arrived on time. And I'm sure you wouldn't be complaining if it had been your guild with two teams in the finals."

Nullpuding was gnashing his teeth by the end of his speech, Gray looked surprised at the foreigner sticking up for his guild and Juvia gave a brief grateful smile. The others seemed to agree with him.

"Your comrades can also become your weaknesses." Rufus continued as if he'd never been interrupted. "Taking hostages, targets to threaten, interrogating for information... There's countless ways your enemy can use them to create an advantageous situation. You should remember that."

"So your brilliant plan is to either effectivelly take hostages in a non-lethal competition or conducting a successful interrogation in the middle of a battle royale?" Naruto said, unable to believe anyone could sound so arrogant while saying something so stupid. "Truly spoken like someone who's never had to do anything of the sort."

It wasn't exactly nice, yes, but he wasn't here to make friends, even if that would be nice. He was here to win. Plus, the man's arrogance was getting on his nerves. It reminded him a lot of pretty much every enemy he'd ever faced.

"And what's a foreigner like you doing here, anyway?" Nullpuding pressed, still trying to find a way to decrease the number of opponents.

"I'm here because the king asked and because my team came first in the maze." Naruto answered simply, causing the shortest competitor to clench his teeth again.

"I don't have a problem with having foreigners in the tournament. It's a great oppurtunity to see some unique types of magic and see where we stand in the world. Not to mention all the beautiful women Uzumaki-san's land must house, if those two are any indication." Eve said to everyone else's agreement, except for when it came to the last part.

"Indeed. I look forward to seeing what magic you possess." Rufus agreed, although he could detect slight anger at his previous comments, despite the man's nearly impeccable control.

"Field open!" The judge yelled out, deciding that avoiding two possible fights between the United Shadows and Raven Tail representatives was a good enough track record and not wanting to risk a third.

Suddenly, there was a spike of magical power and, before everyone's eyes, a whole city was formed out of nowhere.

'_A whole city out of nowhere? Just what kind of ridiculous reserves would you need for that? I doubt even I have enough chakra to accomplish something like that!_' Naruto thought, suddenly wary. His team was in foreign, possibly hostile, territory with someone who could casually create a large city out of nowhere. The king had promised them amnesty, yes, but he'd been through too much to believe in politicians like that.

Sadly, there was nothing he could do. He'd just have to play the game. He'd be much warier from here on out, though. Such callous demonstrations of incredible power were never a good sign from his experience.

The city had finished growing and he found himself standing alone, with no sign of the other competitors.

'_So it's a Forest of Death kind of deal, huh? Only it's a city instead of the woods._'

"The ten participating competitors don't know each other's whereabouts. The rules of Hidden are simple. All of you will be 'it' and be looking for each other mutually. Find each other inside that city. You're free to use any magic you like, you just need to land one hit. If contact is made, a point is added to the attacker and taken from the victim. Damage doesn't matter."

'_So we're playing ninja in a city, huh? Yep, this really is like a safer version of the Chunin Exams. Not that there's anything wrong with that._' Indeed, he was starting to wonder if this wasn't a better place for Hitomi to grow up in than the Elemental Nations. Fiore as a whole was much more peaceful.

Suddenly, his surroundings changed. Ripples went through the air around until they took the shapes of his opponents.

Everywhere.

"These are copies of all of you. If you attack a copy by mistake... You will lose a point. Okay then! Vanish into the stillness! Stalk like black cats under the shroud of night! Hidden has begun!" Upon that little bit of bad poetry, a gong sounded and the Grand Magic Games were officially underway.

'_Playing ninja in a city with clones mixed in. I like their style._' Naruto thought before his mindset changed. No longer was he the playful joker from before. Now, he was the Uzumaki Naruto who'd been through ten years of war and taken more lives than anyone since the Third Raikage.

First step was locating his opponents. Of the two ways he could do it, Sage Mode was the least advantageous. All mages had limited sensory abilities, probably due to their deeper bond with nature energy. As such, Sage Mode would allow any of them to see just how much power he had. If there was anything he'd learnt over the past ten years, it was that deception was a shinobi's strongest weapon. Throwing around so much power when he didn't have too wouldn't help him at all. The proto-Sage-Mode he was using when his team first exited the maze didn't have enough range for this challenge. As such, option one was out.

Option two was the **Kagura Shingan (Mind's Eye of the Divine Entertainment)**. Upon finding out Karin was also an Uzumaki, he vouched for her and she was released after giving information about all of Orochimaru's bases she knew about. She was a little odd at first, but she was family. Very extended family, to the point where they might as well not be related at all, but still. She'd started living next door to him and even called him 'aniki' even though they were the same age. For the last three years, they were actually living together since the house he and Ino were renting next to Kurenai's had two bedrooms (since they weren't dating back when they'd started living there). Hitomi had really taken a shine to her as well. Unlike him, she had inherited the Uzumaki bloodline of healing others and also the Kagura Shingan itself.

He was kind of put off by that, but she offered to teach him, so it was fair.

Nevertheless, he'd grown to love her like a sister, despite her rather odd personality traits. Like sneaking into his and Ino's bed at night whenever she had a nightmare.

Plus, he was _pretty sure_ she was just joking around when she said they 'must revive the clan together'.

Unfortunately, while it was the best way of sensing he had, it also left him unable to move, since he wasn't that experienced with it. Nevertheless, it was the best he could do in this situation.

He was now regretting turning down the Byakugan when it had been offered to him. . The Sixth War had been tough on every village, thanks to the ridiculous numerical disadvantage, so much so that they all had to inhitiate desperate measures. Konoha's was to use the Sharingan and Byakugan vaults Shimura Danzo had accumulated over the years and that Sai had lead them to upon his former master's death. Naruto, as one of the only two army killers they had, was basically required to take one. Or both. However, he'd argued that the enhanced reflexes and sensor abilities Sage Mode gave him were enough to keep him safe and that the eyes were better used on someone else.

He hadn't thought about a stituation like this. The Byakugan would have given him range while not taking away the abillity to move, but it coudn't distinguish a human from a shadow clone.

Oh well, no use crying over spilled milk. He still had a challenge to win.

"**Kagura Shingan**." He muttered. His vision changed, allowing him to see everything in a radius of eighty meters in all directions and even through objects.

It seemed that the copies, while having enough energy to be solid, weren't perfectly identical in energy signatures. Imperfect shadow clones, basically. Once again, just who could possibly be able to throw so much power around so casually?

"Look at this, Juvia has attacked a copy and lost one point!" The announcer stated, interrupting his thoughts. "To handle this, we will wait ten seconds, after which we will restart the game in a different area. As long as time is left on the clock, the game can be repeated as many times as needed. The time limit is thirty minutes, the one with the most points wins!"

'_So a mage's innate tracking abillity doesn't extend that far, huh? Good to know._' Naruto thought. Still, now that he had everyone's locations, it was time to pick targets. In his youth, he could have summoned a copious amount of shadow clones and sent them hunting. Now, however, he didn't have Kurama to protect his mind from the overload of memories. Even one clone dispelling was very distracting, two at the same time caused a mild migraine, three an intensive one and four or more might actually kill him. Still, at least he finally managed to control the amount of chakra he put into each clone instead of using half of his full capacity everytime. That was good.

"**Raiton Kage Bunshin (Lightning Release: Shadow Clone)**." He muttered. A cloud of white smoke obscured his figure, revealing four identical blondes upon dispersing. Each of them then set off in a differetn direction.

The real one headed in the direction of the largest gathering of opponents: both Fairy Tail members and Lyon Vastia, with Nullpuding quickly closing in. 

-OoO-

The tall Olan was still looking for opponents when he was suddenly blindsided by a double foot stomp to his back. The blonde who'd done it stalked away, looking for more victims.

-OoO-

Yaeger was suddenly punched in the face.

-OoO-

Beth Vanderwood felt a tap on her shoulder. However, when she turned around, the perpetrator was no longer there. Nevertheless, it still counted as one less point for her.

The clone was still a part of Naruto, who couldn't bring himself to harm someone of Hitomi's age.

Or someone who was the age _she _would have been.

-OoO-

Nullpuding was kicked in the face before he could find any more fairies to hit.

United Shadows was now in first place, with four points.

-OoO-

Suddenly, it started snowing.

'_Smart._' Naruto thought. The Trimens were often understimated due to their flirtatious nature, but this move proved Eve Tearm was no idiot. The cold made anyone easier to find, as the three quick points Blue Pegasus got attested.

Lyon Vastia, however, was unafected and proceed to stop the blonde's rampage.

Naruto, after receiving the memories of a clone who'd ran out of energy due to doing the furthest travelling, headed in the ice mage's direction. That was the weakness of elementally-charged shadow clones: since they spent chakra to keep the element's shape, they lasted much less than normal shadow clones.

Rufus hadn't moved at all, but he didn't feel like triggering whatever traps the man had set when he didn't have to.

-OoO-

Rufus Lohr smirked as the ants below him scurried desperately to gather points. Such an activity was below any member of Sabertooth. By definition, they were superior.

"This challenge is far too simple. I remember perfectly... The nuances of your movements... Your footsteps... Your magical presences' signatures... I remember... I remember it all..." He muttered.

"**Memori Meiku: Hoshi Furu Yoru ni (Memory-Make: A Night of Falling Stars)**!"

As he opened his arms, beams of electricity travelled through the air, homing in on his opponents.

Including that foreigner, whose replication magic, while amusing and interesting, was still not enough to fool him.

-OoO-

Naruto looked up as he felt Rufus energy spike and then release something at him and the other competitors.

None at his clones, he noticed. The man was better than he thought.

Nevertheless, he knew what to do. Raising an arm, he performed a few quick one-handed hand seals.

"**Chidori (One Thousand Birds )**." He muttered. Blue electricity covered his hand just as the attack came upon him. The A-Rank technique easily absorbed the weaker attack. It really had been worth it spending all those months working on making hand seals with only one hand, even if he could only do it for around ten techniques.

-OoO-

Rufus Lohr was speechless. '_Uzumaki... He actually blocked it?_'

"Hihihi... You're sticking out like a sore thumb!"

He couldn't react to Nullpuding's punch in time.

Nullpuding couldn't react in time to the burst of electricity that hit him in midair, either.

-OoO-

Naruto rushed towards where he sensed Beth, Lyon and Olan were close to each other. His last clone had managed to hit Yaeger before running out of energy, so he just needed two more points to win the challenge.

His excitement must have made him sloppy, however, as eagles made of ice quickly came after him before he could attack them. He quickly pulled out a few kunai, charged them with lightning chakra and threw them at the eagles, destroying them.

"**Raigeki (Lightning Strike)**!" He yelled as, after three hand seals, a bolt of electricity sailed through the air and hit Lyon. He then dodged a blast of soundwaves from Olan and ran at him and Beth, hoping to strike her before she could attack him.

'_She's not _her_, she's not _her_, she's not _her_..._' He thought to himself, hoping to dispel the superimposed image he saw on Beth of a little girl with brown hair and eyes, looking tearfully at her parents' murderer.

It didn't work, especially when she flinched in fear as he got closer.

"Damnit." He muttered out loud as he swerved past the girl and shoulder tackled a surprised Olan before giving Mermaid Heel's representative another tap on the shoulder and rushing off to find more opponents.

There was no time, however.

"And that's the end of it!" The announcer yelled. "These are the standings. This is still the first event, so the rankings can change at any time."

According to the board, United Shadows won the challenge, earning ten points. Sabertooth was next with nine points, Raven Tail with eight points, Lamia Scale with seven points, Blue Pegasus with six points, Mermaid Heel with five points, Quatro Cerberus with four points, Fairy Tail B with two points, Titan Nose with one point and Fairy Tail A with zero points.

The crowd was taking turns between jeering Fairy Tail and insulting Naruto. Having grown up as a jinchuriki, however, he had practice in ignoring them. Instead, he turned towards the Fairy Tail teams. Both representatives were being conforted by their teams, but it didn't seem to be working. Well, they were one of his reasons for being here, so he might as well try to help out. Plus, his emo senses were going off, and he never let their call go unanswered.

"Hey Fullbuster-san, Lockser-san." He started, getting both teams to look at him. Some had curious looks, some were wary and others seemed angry. Probably because they assumed he was going to insult them. "Don't let it get you down. It was just one challenge. Doesn't mean anything in the long run. Trust me, I know from experience." Naruto said, getting flashbacks of his own career. From dead last of his graduation class to kage level and hero of the Fourth War whose name was known to all and feared by most in the Elemental Nations.

Erza Scarlet was the only one who managed to shake off her shock at his words. "Thank you, Uzumaki-san." She said slowly, probably wondering why he'd say such a thing.

Naruto merely nodded before stepping away to join his own team. He had no idea of the two pairs of calculating eyes focused on him.

-OoO-

'_He moves like an assassin. They all do. I wasn't sure before, but it's clear now._' Mavis Vermilion thought. '_There's no way assassins would be sent as genuine emissaries, so who is their target? That man is clearly powerful, so if it were the king, he would probably be dead already. So who are they after? Could it be Fairy Tail? Is that why he complimented those two? Trying to gain our trust?_' She then looked at the thoughtful diminutive man besides her. '_I'm sure the Third realized this too._'

She was correct.

'_What are assassins doing in the games? Are they trying to get close to the king? Or did Ivan hire them to come after us? And what's with that strange magic their ace used?_' Makarov Dreyar thought, disliking how little they knew about the situation. He also dreaded that his son had indeed hired assassins to attack his guild. He still loved the fool, after all.

-OoO-

From Team United Shadow's waiting room, both competitors in the first match could clearly be seen.

Fairy Tail A's Lucy Heartfilia was a curvy beauty with long straight blonde hair, a large chest and brown eyes. Her guild stamp was pink and located on the back of her right hand. She was wearing a purple cleavage-bearing top with the Fairy Tail mark on the left side, a short dark bue skirt, a brown belt which a slightly darker pouch and long black leather heeled boots. From what little Naruto knew of her, she was a Celestial Spirit mage, someone who used special keys to summon spirits from another dimension, much like the shinobi's summoning technique. Unlike the summoning technique, however, it was actually possible to base one's fighting style around it since spirits didn't mind if their summoner had more than one contract.

He wished summons were like that. It would have made Gamabunta allowing him to sign the snake contract much easier. The tasks the damn toad required... He would have probably given up if Manda II hadn't looked so miserable without a summoner. Still, the snake, Gamabunta, Kurama and Shukaku had become good drinking partners, so everything had worked out for everyone. Except for him whenever he tried to summon one of them and they were drunk out of their minds or nursing massive hangovers. And also for the toads whenever the two tailed beasts had a drunken brawl near their mountain.

As a matter of fact, those four were probably sleeping last night's drinking away right now.

-OoO-

In another dimension, a giant sandy coloured raccoon-dog, a giant fox with humanoid front paws and nine tails, an equally gigantic light purple snake with vestigial limbs and a rusty red toad of equal proportions wearing a large blue happi vest were sleeping, snoring loudly, surrounded by equally massive cups and pipes.

"Neh... Hah, that's the way Matatabi-chan..." The raccoon-dog muttered sleepily, making a rubbing motion with it's right paw in the air before dropping it with a loud thud and continuing to snore.

-OoO-

Raven Tail's Flare Corona was also quite a beauty with pale skin, long, dark red hair worn in a pair of massive waist-length braids tied together behind her back, very large breasts matched by similarly large hips and an x-shaped scar on left shoulder. Her curvy figure was hugged by an extremely revealing crimson dress secured by halter-neck straps, which left most of her upper body, namely her back, sides and a large portion of her cleavage almost reaching down to her navel (and, as a result, part of her guild mark) completely exposed. A pair of red heels and long gloves completed the outfit. The only mar to her beauty was the deranged expression on her face. Much like the rest of her team, her appearance was all he knew about her.

"What are those two idiots thinking, fighting in those outfits?" Kurotsuchi muttered angrily.

"You're just jealous that they're both at least three cups above you despite being like ten years younger." Naruto said smartly, relishing on her embarassed and weak denials. About time he got one over on her for a change.

"Anyway, masochist, shouldn't you not notice other women's chests anymore since you're dating that other blonde?" Karui asked, ignoring the slight jealously she felt as well. Hey, it was society that had conditioned her to accept Senju Tsunade as a role model. Not her fault.

"Unlike Kankuro, getting into a commited relationship did not kill my genitals. It's still perfectly fine for me to appreciate other women's looks, just as it's okay for her to ogle other men as long as it's not in front of the other and neither of us cheats or yells out someone else's name during sex." Chojuro blushed at the casual mention of sex while Kankuro muttered darkly. That guy was way too fun to rile up.

"... Regardless, shoudn't you be thinking of marriage soon? I mean, how long have you two been together? And I'm not whipped." Kankuro said, although by this point the denial was more routine than anything else. If his friend hadn't stopped calling him that already, then he'd probably never stop.

"If even Gaara is calling you whipped, then you're whipped. As for marriage, there just hasn't been enough time to think about that lately. And about being together, do you mean having sex, living together or actually dating?"

"You do realize normal people don't do things in that order, right?" Kurotsuchi said, desperate to get at least one little shot in. It wasn't her lucky day, however.

"Normal people aren't as awesome as me or Ino, either. Besides, we're happy this way." He answered.

"Open! Gate of the Golden Bull!" Lucy's yell reminded them that they were supposed to be scouting the competition rather than discuss Naruto's marital status.

"So this is **Seirei (Celestial Spirit)** magic... Interesting..." Kankuro muttered as a minotaur with black and white splotched skin, a nose ring, a black speedo and a belt and wielding an axe appeared next to the blonde on the field.

The minotaur immediately swung his weapon at the redhead, who jumped backwards with a mocking expression on her face.

"Scorpio!" She the blonde yelled again, summoning a relatively tall, lean-built, dark-skinned man with short hair, red on one side and white on the other. His tail was a large gun shaped like a scorpion's tail with the word "Antares" written on it. He was wearing a pea coat with armbands and a dark undershirt.

"**Sando Basutā**** (****Sand Buster)**!" The spirit yelled, releasing a huge tornado of sand from his tail. Flare swung her head as her hair extended, blocking the attack. Lucy was not deterred, however.

"Taurus! Scorpio's sand!" She yelled.

"Moook!" The bull answered before rotating his axe, gathering the sand around it. "**Sajinbu Arudebaran (Sandstorm Axe Aldebaran)**!" He yelled, smashing his axe on the spot Flare used to be, causing several tornadoes of sand to whip out.

"That was a good combination." Kurotsuchi said, forgetting her earlier animosity in favor of a more analythical mindset.

"Indeed. And she used two of the Golden Keys of the Zodiac without looking tired at all. That's not easy from what I read. She's good." Naruto agreed.

Meanwhile, Flare had turned her hair into a wolf while in the air above the tornadoes and sent it at her opponent.

"Open! Gate of the Giant Crab! Cancer!" After her cry, a dark-skinned man with black braided in red cornrows that ended in a shape resembling a crab's pincers, six crab legs on his back, sunglasses and wielding scissors appeared.

"If it's a haircut... Leave it to me ebi." He stated coldly as he leapt at the wolf and it cut at the base with a lightning-fast motion. Flare fell to the ground in an undignified heap.

"My... Hair..." She started, appearing shocked. "... DAMN YOU!" She yelled out in anger, sending her hair to grab her opponent's ankles, using it to to swing the blonde to the ground.

Meanwhile, Naruto was having terrifying flashbacks of another voluptuous redhead who was extremely protective of her hair. He just hoped Flare didn't also turn out to be a sentient mass of flying hair, otherwise he wasn't sure he'd be able to hold in the screams. Discovering that the beauty who'd stolen your first kiss (because he refused to acknowledge that incident with Sasuke) was actually just an animated and transformed corpse was a traumatic experience.

He was snaped out of his reverie by a scream from both fighters. It seemed as if Lucy had used a whip of water with stars of different sizes flowing around it to grab her opponent just as she was beeing swung again, sending both of them flying uncontrollably and then crashing to the ground.

The crowd was loving it. It seemed like Fairy Tail was getting some supporters.

"There hasn't even been time to take a breath in this battle! Battle of the father-son guilds! Battle of the women! Neither is holding back!" The announcer yelled excitedly. Naruto found himself agreeing. It really was a good back and forth affair.

Lucy had removed her boots and was now looking around warily as Flare had sent her hair underground. Suddenly, she looked at her guildmates in the crowd and seemed to try to say something before the opponents hair muffled her. Naruto's instincts screamed that something was wrong. A feeling that was only heightened when Lucy spent the next few minutes not even attempting to defend herself from her opponent's strikes.

"What the hell is going on? They were evenly matched just now! There's no way the blonde just suddenly felt out of energy!" Karui said. She was probably assuming outside interference was involved, hence the anger. There was no honor in the battlefield, yes, but this wasn't a battlefield. This was a friendly competition to determine the strongest guild in Fiore. No lives were at stake. There was no reason for cheating. The thought of such a contest being corrupted was angering.

"The hair..." Chojuro muttered, to everyone else's confusion.

"Corona-san's hair... There are a few locks still underground." He clarified.

Naruto looked more carefully and found out the swordsman was correct. A few of Flare's crimson locks were still stuck in the ground.

Suddenly, his eyes widened. The hair on the ground, Lucy looking at her guildmates in the stands before being muffled and letting herself be beaten up...

'_That _bitch_!_' The blonde thought in anger.

He quickly activated the Kagura Shingan to confirm his theory and then rushed to the Fairy Tail supporters, trying to not tip the redhead off to his actions.

-OoO-

Makarov Dreyar was growing anguished. While the match had started well, his child was now being mercillessly beaten without even trying to defend herself. Maybe they had been too presumptuous to assume they could do in three months what everyone else had done in seven years? The match he was currently seeing certainly lent credence to that theory.

"Hey! Why's this here?!" He heard suddenly. Turning, he was surprised to see Naruto Uzumaki standing next to Asuka, pointing at the... locks of red hair in his hand?

The crowd, meanwhile, was loudly wondering what he was talking about. Even the two combatants had stopped to look at him after his loud yell.

"I'm asking what Flare's hair, which is also her weapon..." He started, giving the locks in his hand a strong pull to prove that it was indeed her hair, "... Is doing here, in the stands, next to a little girl while said little girl's guildmate is being defeated without fighting back."

Everyone gasped. Flare looked like a deer caught in the headlights. A calm voice then spoke.

"Just what are you implying, _foreigner_?" Ivan, Raven Tail's guildmaster, asked from his spot near the wall with an eager expression, as if daring him to state the obvious and emphasizing the word 'foreigner' as if it immediately put his credibility in question.

Naruto knew better than to take the bait, though. He wouldn't have ten years ago, but he did now.

"I'm not implying anything. I merely stated facts. If those facts can be interpreted in ways that are less than flattering for your guild, that is in no way my responsability." He replied in the same calm tone.

"I'm glad to hear it. It wouldn't do to have my guild's reputation stained due to an accident, now would it?" It seemed Ivan was also no stranger to political correctness.

"It really wouldn't. I'm assuming your representative will be more careful in the future?"

"Indeed, she will. Isn't that right, _Flare_?" Raven Tail's guildmaster said, giving his subordinate a pointed look. The redhead visibly flinched.

"Y-yes M-master I-Ivan." She stuttered.

"Anyway..." The announcer started, hoping to return attention to the match. "Now that the mixup has been cleared, we can finally see the match as it was meant to be!"

Makarov didn't quite know how to feel right now. He still didn't trust the assassins, but one of them had just helped Fairy Tail. Nevertheless, he knew he had to at least thank this young man who'd helped two of his children.

"Uzumaki-san..." He started, getting the blonde to pause as he was leaving to rejoin his team. "Thank you for that, even if Ivan was still able to twist it. Is there anything we can do for you in return?" He finished, hoping he'd managed to properly balance wariness and gratefulness.

"No need to thank me, I just did what anyone else would have. As for a favor, me and my team actually wanted to ask you something, but it can wait. You should just focus on supporting your representatives." He answered before continuining to walk away.

At least until a little hand tugged his pants. He looked down to find little Asuka staring at him with big innocent eyes.

"Thank you, onii-chan!" She said brightly, making the wizard saint wonder if she even realized what could have happened.

The one she was thanking, however, didn't seem confortable at all. His eyes were half lidded and his mouth frozen in grimace. His whole body language screamed pain and sadness. Somehow, however, he still managed to pull himself together to pat Asuka on the head and give a hurried 'you're welcome' before hurrying away.

Makarov wasn't sure what was up with the boy, but he knew that there would be questions on both sides eventually.

-OoO-

'_She's not _her_, she's not _her_, she's not _her...' Naruto kept muttering to himself, to no avail. The little girl in a cowboy outfit may not be _her_, but she was _her_ age. He still hadn't gotten over the guilt.

Had he paid a little more attention to what his technique had shown him, and had he known from experience how magical illusions worked, he might have realized the Ivan he'd talked to was nothing but an illusion.

-OoO-

"Always the hero, huh Namikaze?" Kurotsuchi said as she saw him reenter their waiting area. That was before she got a good look at his face. "What happened?" She asked, worried. She may enjoy messing with him, but he was still a comrade and a friend in the last few months.

"A ghost from the pre-sixth days." He answered to everyone's understanding. They all had such ghosts.

On the field, a massive surge of power was felt. Taking a look, he saw Lucy pressing her right palm against the left palm of... What appeared to be another Lucy in a bath towel?

"**Eighty-eight stars of all the heavens... Shine. Urano Metoria (Urano Metria)**." The two Lucys chanted. The one in a towel dissapeared, meaning it was a celestial spirit. Stars and planets appeared all around the real Lucy, their radiance nearly blinding. The crowd cheered. Flare looked terrified.

And then the lights dissapeared, the magic was gone and Lucy collapsed.

"The match is over! The winner is Raven Tail's Flare Corona!" The announcer yelled after wondering what had happened to the spell.

"Those bastards aren't even trying to be subtle anymore, are they?" Karui asked, looking surprisingly calm. He knew better, though. The cowardly display combined with the crowd's jeering of someone who'd clearly just been screwed had caused her to go full circle. She'd need to punch something soon.

"It is rather odd that they'd risk doing things so blalantly just to beat Fairy Tail." Kankuro said.

No one else felt like talking, too immersed in their own thoughts.

-OoO-

The fourth match of the night had just ended with Orga Nanagear of Sabertooth defeating Quatro Cerberus's War Cry in not even a minute. That was what Naruto was focusing on. The man, who was currently singing some horribly off key tune, had used black lightning. As far as he knew, only God Slayers could use black versions of an element in Fiore. If that man really was a God Slayer, then Sabertooth was even more dangerous than he thought. Two third generation Dragon Slayers, a God Slayer, Rufus Lohr's ridiculous abilities and whatever the unknown female could do made a very intimidating lineup.

Nevertheless, there would be time to think about that later. Right now, with Blue Pegasus's Ren Akatsuki's defeat of Mermaid Heel's Arania Web and Fairy Tail B's Mystogan's win over Titan Nose's Olan, it was time to think about their own battle with Lamia Scale.

"Well then, at last we've arrived at the final match of the first day. The two teams remaining are Lamia Scale and United Shadows. It's the number two guild in Fiore against our foreign visitors, who couldn't have asked for a tougher trial!" The announcer stated excitedly, which by now seemed to be his default state.

Naruto already had an idea of Lamia Scale's representative.

"United Shadows... Naruto Uzumaki. Lamia Scale... Jura Neekis._

**Author's note: And thus ends another chapter. As promised, I'll explain a few things you might have a few doubts on.**

**Rufus being able to distinguish Naruto from his clones - They all have the same signature, so he just aimed at the one with the most energy. At least that's how I'm assuming his abilities work.**

**Rufus not dodging Nullpuding - In canon he had more than enough time to see him coming and plant the memory in that place. However, since here he was too busy staring at Naruto's block, like he did in a recent canon chapter when Laxus did the same, he didn't have the time.**

**Kisame - Kabuto got his DNA the same way he got all other Akatsuki members', considering none of them make any sense either.**

**Jiraya - Considering Orochimaru used Edo Tensei as well and he was never a hypocrite about where he stood compared to others, I find it likely that he'd have a sample from his old team mate. Kabuto forced him to lead him to it after reviving him under his control.**

**Also, Titan Nose is a canon guild. It's the one the Fake Salamander got kicked out of. Its members, however, are all OC's. Aside from their ace, though, they'll just be another Quatro Cerberus. Think of them as the team who finished the maze just after Fairy Tail A in canon.**

**Finally, Danzo's vaults full of eyes. Honestly, we see the guy do so much under Sarutobi's nose that I'd be surprised if he hadn't managed to swipe a few pairs of eyes after the Uchiha Massacre. A little graverobbing for the necessary Byakugan, et voila, a few freezers full of perfectly useable and ridiculously powerful eyes to be distributed only upon his rise to power in order to not arouse suspicion.**

**That's all for now guys. Take care.**


	3. Armaggedon

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Fairy Tail. I also have no idea why the material for my own native language is so stupid at this point. How the hell is knowing the names of the ways the spelling of words changed over the times supposed to be useful to anyone but a Portuguese teacher? Seriously, does this happen in any other language?**

**First off, I'm sure a few of you realized that I took away Naruto's Sharingan and Byakugan. I apologize to those of you who were looking forward to that, but it was never something I wanted in the first place. You see, I only put in there because, really, after the idea that the current death toll of the Fourth War combined with two others over ten years would make it impossible for them to win without something like the eye vaults. That combined with the fact that there's no way Tobi could have taken all the eyes during the massacre without anyone noticing led to the idea of Danzo taking them, Sai pointing them out and Kakashi being forced to order their use. Since I couldn't find a reason for Naruto to not get them both, considering he's the best army killer left, I felt compelled to put that in even though I didn't like it. However, when I started writing the battle with Jura it was clear that seeing in every direction+anticipating movements+enhanced reflexes from Sage Mode was just too much so I grew a pair and started using my author privilieges. Nevertheless, I am sorry for that bit of ridiculously poor planning. Hope you guys can look past that and stick around.**

**On another note that I feel needs to be stated here, Hitomi is not the **_**she**_** that kept being mentioned. Hitomi is Kurenai and Asuma's daughter whom Naruto, Ino and Karin have been helping care for after Shikamaru's death seven years before the current storyline (the fact that it coincides with the Tenrou Incident is merely a coincidence by the way) and she's alive and well in Konoha. The **_**she**_** is an unrevealed character who'll be explored in the future.**

**With that out of the way, enjoy Naruto vs Jura.**

**-XXXXXXXXXXXX-**

'_So either the crowd really wants to see me beaten for winning Hidden or the higher ups want to get a good reading on our strength. If that's the case, then they couldn't have found a better way._' Naruto thought immediately.

"Damnit Namikaze, stop hogging the fights!" Kurotsuchi yelled out immediately, Karui voicing out her agreement seconds later.

"It's a shame that our first opponent is someone like that. No way we'll be able to lay low now." Kankuro stated, not even reacting to the women's outburst. It was routine by now, their own way of coping with the stress. Naruto's understanding of everyone's struggles as the only one who'd fought for all villages was one of the reasons he'd been named team leader and, thus, the recipient of everyone's complaints. No one else would be able to do it like that.

The other reason being that he was the strongest.

"It's not like I chose to fight again or anything, especially since Kankuro is right. No one will underestimate us after this. We'll actually have to work now." The blonde stated.

"Still, Naruto-san, since he's an earth user you should be able to defeat him with just **Raiton (Lightning Release)** techniques, right? That should still allow us some surprises, right?" Chojuro asked.

"I'll do my best, but I doubt one of the ten strongest mages in Fiore can be defeated by elemental advantages alone. Plus, there's the magic shield." He answered, stepping towards the arena, nodding at his team mates' words of encouragement as he left.

The magic shield was one of the biggest differences between mages and ninjas. While shinobi, despite their powers, were just as durable as any civilian, mages had a cloak of Eternano around their bodies that made them much, much harder to kill. It was rather similar to his chakra cloak while in Sage Mode, but more concentrated around their bodies, owing to a mage's deeper connection with natural energy, or Eternano as it was called here. Nevertheless, since their cloak so concentrated around their bodies, they didn't get the abillity to treat it as an extension of their physical being like he could, but were much more durable instead. This also gave all of them minor sensory abilities, but not to the extent he had. What took minutes of absolute concentration in the Elemental Nations was as natural as breathing to a mage, and even he felt the difference in the time it took to gather nature energy. Nearly any jutsu of C-rank or higher was deadly to a ninja but not a mage. Nearly everything mages did to each other was also deadly to ninja.

That had been a major point of contention. The minute he'd found that out he'd immediately requested that his team mates be removed from the mission since, unlike him, they wouldn't be able to survive nearly anything thrown at them.

He still remembered the argument that had led to.

-XXX-

_(One month earlier)_

_"You can't expect us to just go back on the mission!" Kurotsuchi yelled in outrage. Her voice echoed in the extremely cramped Hokage's Office. _

_Kitsuchi flinched, probably experiencing a few flashbacks to his daughter's earlier years._

_"She's right! There's no reason for that!" Karui yelled as well. Darui sighed._

_"You will withdraw because it's too risky. You are all among the most powerful of your respective villages. Considering how things are, we can't risk losing you just because that king wants to see you fight." He explained._

_"Naruto is the only one who can fight in this tournament without risking his life." Kakashi added. "Fights in the tournament are one on one with relatively even opponents, something none of you are used to anymore. Since killing is not allowed, you won't be able to use your best techniques while they will have no such problems." _

_"It is very unlikely that you will be able to avoid getting hit throughout the whole competition. If you do get hit and die because of something that wouldn't do as much damage to a mage, it will be easy for them to deduce something is wrong and expose our main weakness against them. From that to an invasion is only a short step." The Tsuchikage finished. _

_"Even so, we don't know for sure if the king can control mages like that." Kurotsuchi countered in a much more even tone, realising yelling wouldn't help her cause._

_"They're still his subjects. They'll do whatever he tells them or be charged for treason, just like here. We fought a war over that, if you'd recall." Mei answered calmly, none of the ditzyness she sometimes showed being visible. It was no time for that._

_"Not to mention those 'dark guilds' you reported about would no doubt jump at the chance of moving here." Darui added._

_"Regardless, we've already made promises to the king. Going back on them now would stain the reputation of the Elemental Nations as a whole, and our villages in particular." Kankuro answered in the same tone, although a note of anger was noticeable. It seemed like he wasn't pleased at being told to withdraw, either._

_"Our reputations are not worth the lives of five S-ranked ninjas." Gaara countered in his usual monotone, although his eyes showed concern. He really had changed._

_"But what about those sailors?" Karui pressed. "At least one of them has to have babled about the way to cross the sea. We all know drunken sailors like to brag to any skirts around."_

_"Even more of a reason for the five of you to return permanently." The Mizukage answered._

_"The king may see our leaving has an insult and use that information to attack as retaliation. We all know politicians can be petty like that." Kurotsuchi tried again._

_"Your leaving can be spun as a war breaking out. No one can question that." Kakashi answered._

_"I thought we weren't supposed to even hint at the continent's weakening? Why is it suddenly okay? And what if the king offers aid?" Karui asked in frustration._

_"It's okay because it's your lives at stake. Losing five of the strongest warriors we have left would crush morale and make a rehash of the Fifth War basically guaranteed. Especially when one of those five is the 'Monster Hidden in the Leaves'. And the king hasn't even signed the treaty, so there's no reason for him to offer help." Kitsuchi answered. Kankuro, Karui and Kurotsuchi seemed out of ideas._

_"Why aren't you talking, Naruto?" The puppeteer asked, hoping his friend could turn the argument around._

_"I'm not talking because I agree with the kages." The blonde said in a calm voice. This simple declaration of conformism from someone who was usually so unruly was enough to silence his team. "Kankuro, Kurotsuchi, Karui, you all have families who would be devastated at losing you. Chojuro is the hero of the Mist. You're all too important to risk on a situation like this, with so little to gain. I'm staying in Fiore, however. You know you can't stop me from doing it either, even if you banish me." The last part was directed at the leaders, who seemed more resigned than anything else._

_"That was part of the plan actually, since you can escape whenever you need to." Darui said._

_That seemed to clinch it. Being reminded of their families stroke a chord. Kankuro's head dropped while the women averted their eyes and clenched their fists, struggling between the desire of completing a mission of such importance and the price their families would pay in the likely event of their deaths._

_They were forgetting someone, however. _

_"I won't do it either." Chojuro's decided tone broke the silence that had set since the Raikage's declaration._

_"What do you mean you won't do it?" Mei asked, shocked at her subordinate's first ever bout of insubordination._

_"I won't do it. I'm sorry, Mizukage-sama, but I won't leave Naruto-san alone like that."_

_"You do realize you're talking about risking your life for flimsy reasons, right?" Darui's question seemed to put a damper on his mood._

_"And how is that any different from what we've been doing for the last ten years? Or since we left the academy, for that matter?" Kankuro's acute reasoning lifted his spirits again, however._

_"Kankuro is right. This tournament is no different from the usual parts of our lifestyle. I don't see why you're being so dramatic." Kurotsuchi added, having regained her spunk. _

_"It's simple, really: we're finishing the mission wether you approve or not. So either get on board or get out of the way." Karui finished. _

_"I don't like it, but it's their choice, so I won't oppose." Naruto stated, standing beside his team mates._

_"So you are all willing to be banished for what? The glory of completing the mission?" Gaara asked, having noticeable difficulty in mantaining his tone. His eyes spoke of obvious worry. _

_"No, Kazekage-_sama_," Kankuro started, his tone biting at his brother's implication, "We are risking our lives, as we have done from the moment we graduated from the academy, for the sake of ensuring a superior force does not attack us. Not to mention this is an actual joint effort authorized by the collective daimyo despite the last ten years. If we withdraw we'll never get an opportunity like this again. Your concern, while touching, is not helpful. The completion of this mission is vital, so we will accomplish it with or without your approval."_

_"You can't stop us. This is too important. Banish us if you have to, but we're seeing this mission through." Naruto finished as the team looked at their leaders with determined expressions._

-XXX-

The kage really hadn't had a choice. Transporting five people with Hiraishin over such a distance twice had been exhausting, however.

-OoO-

"Awesome! It's Cooler-Laxus against the rock guy!" Natsu Dragneel yelled excitedly.

"Cooler-Laxus? Why do you call him that?" Elfman wondered.

" Well, he's got the same hair and powers as Laxus, except he's cooler beceuse he tried to help Lucy and he won that game. So, he's Cooler-Laxus." The Dragon Slayer stated simply as if it were obvious.

Erza didn't acknowledge the exchange, focusing on the foreigner as he dissapeared from his team's waiting area into the halls that led to the arena.

_'Just who are you? And why did you help us?'_

"What's happening?" A voice from behind them asked, causing them to turn around.

"Lucy, are you alright?" Erza asked.

"Yeah, no problem!" The blonde answered with a smile, giving her a thumbs up. It wasn't really convincing, but at least she was well enough to pretend she was fine. The redhead hated to do this, but that would have to do for the moment. They needed to scout the two fighters, especially considering they knew very little about the foreigners. Besides, the battle might even cheer the celestial mage up.

"That guy who tried to help you is fighting the bald guy from Lamia Scale!" Natsu explained. The blonde seemed surprised at that before rushing to the edge of the balcony to get a better look. Erza couldn't help but smile. It seemed the battle really would cheer her up.

-OoO-

_'He doesn't seem bothered at all by facing one of the Ten Wizard Saints. Could that Jura be his target? Is he trying to disguise the assassination of one of Fiore's strongest as an accident?' _Mavis Vermillion, recently returned from her bathroom break, thought as she stared at the blonde man who'd finally emerged from the hallways that led to the field. _'It won't do any good to expose him when I don't know everything. I'll have to stay attentive for anything suspicious.' _

_'I hope you don't get too injured here, Uzumaki-san.'_ Her successor's successor thought. _'I still have much to ask you.'_ In private, however. Makarov Dreyar knew that many of his children wouldn't be as understanting or accepting of an assassin as he was.

-OoO-

Jura Neekis stood with his arms resting on his sleeves as he observed his opponent. The blonde man seemed to be in his mid twenties with long spiky hair held by a blue headband with a metallic front decorated with a swirl resembling a leaf, and blue eyes. An odd detail were the six lines on his cheeks, three on each side, which resembled whiskers. Markings of magic, perhaps? Something exclusive to a very specific kind of training, just like Dragon Slayers had sharper canines? Some sort of 'Lion Slayer', maybe? Regardless, from what he could see, the man's build was solid yet also rather lean, the mark of someone who could take punishment yet also show remarkable agility if necessary. His clothes were rather odd: a thick green flak jacket with three pouches on each side of the chest, a neck guard and extra padding over the shoulders. Under that he wore a black undershirt and pants of the same colour. He had a small pouch on each side of his waist. A short sleeved red coat with black flame patterns on the hemline obscured everything else about the outfit except for the black sandals and fingerless gloves with metalic guards in the back which completed the ensemble.

The Wizard Saint was curious, however. He'd held his position for nearly ten years, so he knew an assassin when he saw one. While he wasn't one to judge, especially considering he didn't know how things were done in the other man's lands, the fact that his opponent didn't react at all to facing someone of his reputation left him wary. Could he be targetting him? Part of an effort to prepare for an invasion, perhaps?

Regardless, 'Iron Rock Jura' would not let his guard down.

-OoO-

The crowd's reception hadn't gotten any warmer, not that he expected it too. Still, with him as the only target, the combined effect of millions of spectators yelling out chants such as 'Jura's gonna kill you!', 'You're gonna gonna get your fucking head kicked in!' and 'Go cry back to your own country!' was actually almost intimidating from down in the field. Emphasis on almost.

The blonde had more important things to worry about. His gaze was focused on his opponent.

Jura Neekis was tall and massive man with a heavily muscular figure, a bald head, a pair of oval-shaped black marks just above his black eyes, a long thin, wavy black goatee and mustache and seemingly lacking eyebrows. He wore a dark kimono, with the collar and the sleeves adorned by a dark motif consisting of many squares placed in succession, linked together by a dark line and similarly flanked by two more lines, striped, traditional hakama and geta sandals paired with light tabi. He also sported a dark mantle draped over his shoulders. A master of **Tsuchi Mah****o (****Earth Magic)**, 'Iron Rock Jura' was, on paper, the strongest fighter in the tournament. Naruto may have acted confident in front of his team, but he was actually worried. Mages may be ridiculously more durable than ninjas, but he still wouldn't risk using any jutsu above B-rank, aside from certain exceptions, nor chakra-reinforced blades of any kind, as cutting and piercing damage wasn't as covered by the shield and he didn't know how to use them without meaning to kill. Not to mention that he hadn't actually faced anyone of his level since the Fourth War. The Fifth and Sixth wars were all about more numerous but much less skilled enemies, to the point where he wasn't used to one on one fights lasting more than a few seconds anymore. He was severely handicapped, something which was never good against an opponent of the ace of Lamia Scale's caliber. This would be tough.

"Naruto Uzumaki gets unlucky enough to not only be chosen for both the challenge and battle portions of today, but also to have the sole member of the Ten Wizard Saints as an opponent!" The announcer yelled. "What do you think is going through his mind right now Yajima-san, Jenny-san?"

"I wouldn't know for sure, but I'd imagine he is going through his whole skillset, comparing what he has to what his opponent has and trying to come up with a gameplan. He looked too calm and professional during Hidden to be panicking like most would." The former councilman answered.

"Not to mention that he didn't seem to have any problems during Hidden and won pretty confortably." Jenny added. "This should be a good match."

Both competitors had reached the middle of the field, standing around twenty steps away from each other. Naruto, however surprised everyone by continuing to advance until he stood in front of his opponent and extended his arm for a handshake.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Jura-san." He said.

Jura seemed surprised for a moment before giving a satisfied smile and returning the gesture, "Same to you, Naruto-dono. It is an honor to be able to experience your strenght first hand."

"I look forward to seeing your power as well." The blonde replied, letting go and returning to his previous spot after a few more pleasantries. _'He definitely has some sort of earth armor similar to Gaara's sand armor, I could feel it. That means the smaller snakes can't hurt him while the larger ones will just be beaten before they can even get to him. Same with the toads, aside from Ma and Pa, but they dislike fighting so what's basically a spar won't interest them. I'm on my own here.'_ He had truly inhitiaded the handshake as a show of respect, but he wasn't about to complain that it had gotten him precious information. Knowing that the contingency plan of sending snakes underground to paralyze his opponent with their toxins wouldn't work was always a good thing.

"And the two combatants have just shaken hands in an incredible show of sportsmanship! This is what the Grand Magic Games are all about!"

Naruto reached his spot. Jura looked eager for the match to start. The blonde felt the same. Just as he had told Chojuro, it was easier do your best if you enjoyed. And he had a feeling he was going to enjoy this. Maybe even a little more than should.

"Lamia Scale, Jura Neekis vs United Shadows, Naruto Uzumaki. Today's final match... Start!"

The crowd was silenced. Both competitors stood still. Eagerness oozed from the spectators.

Naruto moved, going through a quick chain of handseals. "**Raiton: Shichū Shibari ****(Lightning Release: Four Pillar Bind)**!" Four rock pillars rose from the floor, each over twice as tall as the average house. Jura was briefly surprised, but that quickly faded when the pillars started sparking. The mage had already started trying to manipulate the pillars, and so was able to elongate them and send them after their creator before the lightning was released. Said creator soon found himself surrounded. Having stopped the jutsu the minute control over the pillars was usurped, thus stoping the electricity's release, his hands were free for another jutsu to defend.

"**Raiton: Jibashi (Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder)**!" A large wave of blue electricity erupted from his hands, eradicating the pillars and forcing the earth user to jump backwards outside the technique's range.

Both competitors stood as they had in the beginning, only farther apart.

_'So he can control even earth charged with electricity. He's much faster with it than I expected, too. And his movements show he knows taijutsu as well.' _Naruto thought.

_'It seems those hand signs are indeed necessary to use those abilities, but I felt no magic from him. Just how is he doing this? And how can he use blue lightning? I have only ever heard of yellow and black.' _Jura wondered before deciding to just ask rather than waste time on trying to figure out something he probably couldn't. He'd never heard of anyone using magic without any Eternano. "How did you that? That was clearly some sort of magic, yet I felt no Eternano on you. That should not be possible, so how are you doing this?" The crowd had been silenced at that, clearly interested in the answer as well.

Naruto wanted to keep that secret, but the Wizard Saint's respectful tone made it impossible to do in good conscious, so he decided to be courteous. Besides, going the whole tournament without answering that question wouldn't help them anyway. "Simple, really: I'm not using magic." That simple statement shocked everyone. "Magic is used through Eternano, the energy of nature which you absorb from the atmosphere into your bodies in special containers which get larger with use. In the Elemental Nations, however, Eternano is much harder to reach, so our people have used an alternate energy source for centuries now. This energy, called chakra, is actually produced in the body, meaning it isn't part of the natural world, so it requires handseals to knead. Also, since it is so conneccted to our being, running out of chakra can kill us." He explained.

"I see..." Jura muttered. "So can people in Fiore use chakra as well?"

"Not as far as I know. Chakra is basically Eternano modified to be closer to the human body through the generations when people's Eternano receptors atrophied during the centuries the Ten-Tailed Beast lived after it sucked all the Eternano from the atmosphere when it arrived."

"The Ten-Tailed Beast?" Jura asked, confused.

"An incredibly powerful creature created by Zeref." The blonde said, shocking everyone once again. "From what we pieced together from the Crocus library and our own historical records, it seems to have been the first great demon Zeref created but he couldn't control it, so he sent it away. It ended up in the Elemental Nations, where magic had yet to be discovered. It's power was so great that it managed to eat all the Eternano in the continent's atmosphere, increasing it's power so much that it practically became made of super condensed energy that was even harmful to the touch. With no more Eternano in the atmosphere, the energy in people's bodies became stale and through the generations eventually became so connected with the organism that it couldn't be recognized as Eternano anymore, thus becoming chakra. It wasn't until a few centuries of living in fear of the beast, however, that chakra was finally discovered by a man history knows as the Sage of the Six Paths. His chakra pathways around the eyes had evolved to the point where they had changed, giving him the abillity to see the chakra pathways in the body. Using the great powers given to him by the eyes, the Sage fought the Beast and managed to seal it's power, and with it the Beast's soul as well, inside of himself and the body inside a rock construct which he launched into space, becoming the moon. The Sage then spent his days wandering the continent, teaching people how to use chakra. In his final years, sensing his imminent death and knowing that the Beast would be released when he died, he separated the Beast's power and consciousness into nine weaker ones. After teaching the nine beasts the ways of peace and wishing them the best, the Sage died. They're currently somewhere were no one can get to them." He finished, not mentioning that the theory had actually been pieced together by a team of scholars from every nation from what they'd sent in their reports.

"I see..." The mage said slowly, still processing the story. The crowd seemed to have the same problems.

-OoO-

_'So you managed to influence even another continent entirely, huh, Zeref-sama?' _A muscular, well-built man of average height and wearing heavy armor which noted obvious importance, thought. He had a deep set eyes and high cheekbones, a small scar running from his left temple to the edge of his thick eyebrows, a snub, square-shaped nose, dark and wavy hair sticking up around his head, with prominent sideburns that joined into a curved and pointed beard. _'And you didn't even know this continent existed, too. Or didn't you? Regardless, you truly are an incredible man.'_ His gaze focused on Naruto. _'I wonder if those foreigners would be wiling to help with the eclipse plan.' _

-OoO-

"Where are the nine beasts, then? They sound like fascinating creatures." Jura asked sincerely. After all, centuries old peaceful beasts one can have an actual conversation with? Who wouldn't want to meet them?

"In another dimension similar to the one Celestial Spirits inhabit after the last time someone tried to use them to revive the Ten Tails. Anyway, shouldn't we get back to fighting?" He asked impatiently, not wanting to give any more information to potential enemies. Especially considering there were probably dark mages watching who wouldn't hesitate to try to revive one of Zeref's creations.

"Ah, yes. A shame, however. Having a conversation with such wizened creatures would no doubt be an incredible experience."

"Depends on the one, really. Overall, though, you just find yourself wondering how something so old can be so childish." The blonde said with a sweatdrop, thinking back to all the times he'd seen the beasts drunk or high or losing at gambling against the toads or snakes. Or whenever Shukaku got in trouble for flirting with Matatabi. At least Gyuki hadn't picked up Kirabi's rapping habit.

Thank the Sage for small miracles.

"What are you doing Jura? Stop talking and win already!" Lamia Scale's guildmaster yelled.

"Damnit Namikaze, stop yapping and end this already." Kurotsuchi yelled as well.

Both Naruto and Jura looked embarassed at that.

"They have a point. It's been nearly eight minutes now and we haven't really done anything." The blonde said, focusing back on the battle. Although he was definitely going to tease the Iwa nin about how much she sounded like the old lady.

"Yes. Still, I would enjoy continuing this conversation later."

"Sure, why not."

"Oh? It seems as if a friendship is being forged right here! This is what the Grand Magic Games are all about!" The announcer yelled, apparently forgetting that he'd said nearly the exact same thing just before the match started.

Jura had decided to go on the offensive this time, sending a rock fist at his opponent.

Naruto was ready, preparing his counterattack in a blur of handseals.

"**Raijū Hashiri no Jutsu**** (Lightning Beast Running Technique)**!" Electricity condensed around his hand and then expanded until it formed a hound which immediately jumped at the fist.

Jura was better than that, however. Knowing his attack had the elemental disadvantage, he had the fist curve around the hound and head straight for the opponent. The blonde felt the pain of being a generalist rather than a specialist. Since he knew so many techniques, he had one for almost every situation, but he wasn't very experienced with most of them. Controllable techniques were foremost in this. His hound may have the elemental advantage but he couldn't control it as well as his opponent could.

Hence why he currently had a fist made of solid rock headed towards him while his dog made of electricty stood in the middle of the rock spiral, too far away to save him. Luckily, the base of the fist was in sight, so his hound managed to hit it and destroy it just as the fist was closing in on the ninja, causing it to go off course and smash into the ground behind him. Naruto took the chance to retaliate.

"**Raiton: Gian (Lightning Release: False Darkness)**!" A spear of electricty was fired from his mouth, homing in on Jura.

Or it would have, if he hadn't defended. "**Gan Tetsu Heki (Iron Rock Wall)**!" Numerous pillars of earth formed in front of the mage, obscuringhim from view. The lightning spear went through the pillars in seconds, yet the Wizard Saint was nowhere to be seen.

_'He must be using his ability to move in the ground. Damnit, I don't have the time to activate the Kagura Shingan and he'll strike the minute he senses me charging up for Sage mode. I'll have to stay on my toes.' _The blonde thought, charging up a Chidori with only one hand as he looked around for his opponent. Sadly, it wasn't enough as the bald man appeared right in front of him with his fist encased in rock, giving a bone rattling punch to the torso.

"**Chidori Nagashi (One Thousand Birds Current)**!" Just as rock fist and squishy human flesh separated, the Chidori was released in every direction, shocking the Wizard Saint and destroying the rocks around his fist. The fact that the current split the power of an A-rank technique in many made it safe for use here, even though it was an A-rank technique as well.

Still, it wasn't fast enough to avoid the punch, which sent him flying away quite a few feet and land on his back.

_'Fuck! Fuck fuckity _fuck_!' _He thought as he got up, clutching his torso. _'I haven't gotten hit this hard in years!' _The padding in his jacket had taken the brunt of the damage, but only to the point where it didn't break anything. It would definately leave a bruise.

Jura, thanks to the magic shield, had already recovered and used his magic to split the nearby surface into boulders of various sizes and send them at the blonde.

"**Chidori Senbon (One Thousand Birds Senbon)**!" A large quantity of electricity was gathered around Naruto's hand, making a sound reminescent of birds chirping. Suddenly, the aglomerate dissolved into countless sharp senbon that turned the boulder onslaught into dust. Both fighters stood still as the dust settled around them.

"Both competitors keep testing each other and we are at the ten minute mark! What an incredible match it's been so far!" The announcer yelled (or was that just his normal way of speaking at this point?).

The gloves had come off. They were now done testing each other. It was time to get serious.

Jura immediately made pillars rise from the ground as Naruto unleashed another lightning spear. The spear missed and the pillars went after Naruto, who used another Chidori Nagashi to destroy them. All according to plan.

"**Haō Gan Sai**** (****Supreme King Rock Crush )**!" He yelled. The debris from the previous exchange flew at Naruto and surrounded him. However, before the usual followup to that step could be reached, Naruto was forced to use Chidori Nagashi again, freeing himself. He was starting to feel slightly tired, however. He'd already used Chidori five times that day, always with only one hand. Combined with everything else, it was starting to catch up. Not even close to being a problem yet, but something to be attentive too.

Jura's hands moved again, bringing another set of pillars to strike his opponent. Hoping to save chakra, Naruto opted to dodge rather then destroy them. The first pillar smashed into the ground just to his left. He then attached himself to another coming from his right and climbed up, being followed by three other pillars. After ten steps, he focused chakra to his legs and leaped at the floor through the minute gaps , creating a crater upon landing on the floor. He immediately started forming handseals before the pillars could change direction.

"**Chidori Eisō ****(One Thousand Birds Sharp Spear )**!" For the sixth time that day, electricity condensed around Naruto's fist and the sound of chirping birds was heard.He willed it to extend, forming a spear which he used to chop the pillars at the bottom. Jura's attacks fell around the shinobi, kicking up a cloud of dust.

_'I see. He planned on using the dust as cover. Nevertheless, I can still sense him.' _Jura thought. His sensing ability pointed towards his opponent being in the same place. Suddenly, two giant shuriken appeared from the dust cloud.

_'He wasted the cover on something my magic can stop?!' _The mage thought in surprised. _'No, wait, those shuriken are not aimed at me at all.' _His eyes then widened. _'Wait, those aren't objects!'_

The fuma shuriken on the left, having been thrown first, got past Jura earlier and thus was surrounded by white smoke before it's compatriot, turning into Naruto.

_'Transformation? Used in battle?' _Jura thought in wonder.

The now untransformed Naruto quickly landed and produced a chain from another smoke cloud which it threw at Jura.

Or so it seemed. The chain went confortably behind the Wizard Saint, nowhere close to actually hit him.

It did, however, land dead on the hands of a second Naruto, freshly untransformed as well.

_'He used the cover from our attacks to have his doppelgangers hold a chain behind me?' _ Jura thought in bewilderment, being unsure of how to act for one of the few times in his life.

Those few seconds cost him as Naruto had come charging out of the dust cloud the moment his first clone untransformed, charging up an attack with both hands. By the time the mage had noticed him, the faster combatant was already upon him with the fully formed technique in his right hand. "**Raiton: Rasengan (Lightning Release: Spiralling Sphere)**!" A sphere of pure chakra with what appeared to be an arrowhead made of electricy sticking out of it's equator was rammed into the center of the bald man's chest. The clones holding the chain stepped backwards until Jura's back was in contact with the object. The opposing force applied by the chain to the one applied by the Rasengan allowed the technique to hurt even more. After barely over one second of the technique drilling and piercing into Jura, the clones let go of the chain and the original released the technique, unleashing all the built-up electricity into Jura's system and blowing him away at the same time. The jutsu was strong enough to blow the Wizard Saint all the way from just around forty feet away from the center of the field to the arena wall. The impact was strong enough to obscure the mage's body in a cloud of dust.

Naruto wiped his forehead with his right hand, signaling the clone on that side to dispel as he had planned before summoning it. It wouldn't do to have even a light headache right now. Still, it was a shame that he'd been forced to reveal that not all his clones were of the elemental kind, but it had to be done. Elementally charged shadow clones could only use jutsu of their nature, since that was the only kind of chakra they had, so they couldn't have been used in that plan.

"Incredible! Naruto Uzumaki just combined three diferent kinds of chakra usage to deal a heavy blow to one of the Ten Wizard Saints! Could this be the end of the match?" The announcer wondered excitedly. The crowd, on the other hand, had gone completely silent.

-OoO-

"Hey Lyon, is Jura-san okay?" Chelia asked her cousin's former crush, looking worriedly at the spot where their leader had fallen.

"It was a pretty strong hit." Yuka said matter-of-factly, although there was some worry in his voice as well.

"Calm down you two." Lyon Vastia ordered. "Jura-san would never be defeated so easily." He said with certainty, hoping to tranquilize his team mates.

It seemed to work to an extent, if their expressions were anything to go by.

_'Although, to be able to outmaneuver Jura-san like that speaks of great skill and power. I'm starting to feel better about my loss.'_

-OoO-

Lyon's words rang true as a tall shadow soon rose in the fading dust, revealing itself as Jura Neekis. However, the attack had clearly left a mark.

Literally, as the skin in the spot where the A-rank technique had hit was now adorned with a large spiral-shaped scar, deeper in the center and surroundee by eletrical burns. The white hakama had been completely erased in that spot and there was dust in the edges of the wound, which was noticeably deeper than the surrounding skin.

_'He really had an armor like Gaara's.' _Naruto thought, not very surprised that the match wasn't over. Rasengan was an a A-rank technique, yes, but it depended on time. Given enough time, it could drill through anything, being lethal after three seconds of contact with the average human body, as by then even just releasing the chakra caused fatal internal injuries. The elemental variations shortened that time to just one second, hence why he'd felt that it was safe to use without intending to kill. Still, something that wouldn't be immediately lethal to a shinobi didn't have much of a chance of defeating someone of Jura's level.

It did, however, rattle a quite a few organs if the man's errant footsteps were any indication.

"You don't seem surprised that your attack didn't defeat me." The tall man commented.

"I'd be disapointed if this match ended without me making you use your full strength." His opponent answered.

"Oh? A bold proclamation from our guest! Can he match up to it or is he doomed to fail after his showcase of three new abilities failed to net him the win?" The announcer wondered.

Naruto decided to answer that by pulling out three tri-pronged kunai with special seals on the handle from the pouch attached to the back of his waist. Using the same tricks his opponent had already countered wasn't going to work. It was time for a few more abilities to be shown.

Damnit, he'd hoped to lay low. Why'd his first opponent have to be someone this strong?

He had to hand it to the man. He didn't have many tricks, but they were so effective he didn't really need any more.

One kunai was thrown, the others quickly following on either side of it. He had to act fast before Jura recovered enough to disappear into the ground again.

_'Only three of those kunai? And only one of them is actually coming my way? What could he be planning?'_ The mage wondered. He got his answer a few seconds later when, in numerous poofs of smoke, three kunai became thirty, all headed towards him.

"**Gan Tetsu Heki (Iron Rock Wall)**!" A blocky rectangular wall rose in front of the earth specialist, blocking every single blade before it could reach him. All except one turned to smoke on contact.

The other two originals ended up far from Jura, behind the wall.

_'Perfect.' _Naruto thoughtbefore both he and his clone blinked out of existence, appearing near the kunai. "**Raiton: Gian (Lightning Release: False Darkness)**!" Jura didn't even have time to think before twin spears of electricity hit him, sending thousands of volts through his system.

"Naruto Uzumaki outmaneuvers Jura yet again with a new ability, landing another heavy hit! Could this be the end?"

After two seconds of torture, the spears faded and the clone dispelled. Naruto was starting to feel the drain of so many techniques. He still had a lot of energy, though. Now was the time to capitalize on the latest hits.

Or it would have been, had it not been for the Wizard Saint's incredible will. One second he was screaming in pain, the next he'd sent two pillars at... The Hiraishin kunai?

_'No way...' _Naruto thought, shocked that anyone had been able to figure out the technique after only seeing it once. So shocked was he that he didn't even react when the kunai were smashed into the wall and destroyed. He did, however, react when the remains of the pillars separated into cubes and shot towards him. Since he had no chance of dodging the cage of rocky death that surrounded him on all sides, there was only one option. So, he used Hiraishin to appear next to the kunai behind the wall.

Right into Jura's hands.

The moment he felt the same energy he had from the other two kunai before the pain came, the mage ordered his wall to split into it's components, sending them smashing right into the surprised blonde.

"Oh! Jura Neekis just got a heavy hit in in return as well! Naruto Uzumaki was just hit by those rocks point blank! Can he recover or is this it?"

Naruto barely heard the announcer, too absorbed in trying to remember where he was. He'd been caught completely unaware by the rocks and only had time to protect his head from the onslaught. He was just lucky Jura was still feeling the effects of the electricity and thus hadn't been able to control the rocks as well as he usually could, otherwise he'd have some broken bones at the very least.

Not that it made the pain everywhere any easier to bear.

Slowly, he got up, just as his opponent seemed to pull himself together after the desperation move, dust from the earth armor sliding off him, unable to mantain it's cohesion after the powerful electrical shock. Both were feeling the effects of the previous exchange. They stared at each other. The clock marked fifteen minutes.

"How did you figure it out?" Naruto asked.

"A burst of energy came from the kunai just before you disappeared. Reminded of the use of lacrima." His opponent answered.

With nothing else to say, the two fighters looked at each other, waiting for the opponent to make the first move.

Jura's left leg rose, was covered in rock and came down on the last kunai, destroying it.

A fourth spear of lightning was the response. It was dodged and replaced an avalanche of rocks. A kunai got thrown through the horde, bringing Naruto with it once it got past the rocks. Jura had expected that, however, and had sent another fist of rock to meet Naruto the moment he materialized. Naruto had the breath taken out of him, yet he knew he couldn't let this hit go unanswered, otherwise it was over. So he did his best to ignore the pain and retaliate.

"**Raiton: Kuropansa (Lightning Release: Black-Spotted Difference)**!" He yelled as the black lightning he'd painstainkingly learnt from Darui emerged from his body and formed into a panther, which leapt at Jura and bit him, releasing the discharge. Black lightning was stronger and, more importantly, faster than the regular blue, so it was the only thing he could use in that situation. It was also much more draining, however, to the point were a simple B-rank technique had just taken as much out of him as the Chidori.

None of this was on his mind, however. The cracked ribs that the jacket hadn't been able to protect him from that time were. The fall onto the rocks he'd previously dodged wasn't helpful, either.

"Naruto Uzumaki has just revealed the ability to use black lightning as well! And now both competitors are down!"

-OoO-

"What is that idiot doing?" Kurotsuchi asked in a rage, although her concern was obvious. "Why hasn't he used that damn Sage Mode yet? Is he trying to get himself killed?"

"No." Kankuro said calmly, although the others knew him well enough by now to see he was worried as well. "By not using Sage Mode against such a powerful opponent, he's showing us what we can expect when it's our turn, since we didn't get the chance to fight any mages before the labyrinth."

"That idiot." Karui said after a long silence, but her expression of thankfulness contradicted her words. "He really is too nice for his own good sometimes. He better not die."

The silence that followed her words spoke more about her team mates' agreement than any words could.

-OoO-

"Hey Orga, how do you feel about having someone else use black lightning?" Sting Eucliffe asked his team mate with a mocking smile. It was all joking, of course. The muscled musician's jaw was as firmly unhinged as it had been when the foreigner first revealed that ability.

-OoO-

_'Well, that settles it. I'm done holding back.' _Naruto thought as he used his average medical abilities to heal himself as best as he could. Cracked bones mended themselves as the green chakra spread through them, allowing to try to get up. After Shikamaru's death, which had only happened because there hadn't been a medic around, Naruto had asked Shizune to teach him some healing techniques, not wanting to have another comrade die in his arms. While doubtful at first, she'd eventually agreed, but only on the condition that he not question her orders. He'd agreed, and as a result spent eighteen goddamn months perfecting his chakra control until she declared him good enough to start practising on animals. He'd been cleared to treat humans for only three years now. Although much of that was owed to Hana taking pity on him and helping him out with roadblocks in his training whenever they had missions together. It almost made up for all the teasing. Almost.

Still, he was pissed. Not only had Hiraishin been countered again, but his healing abilities had been revealed, he was lucky to have survived this much and, worst of all, his sage coat was full of tears! Shiima was gonna have his head!

It was time to bring out Sage Mode. He'd already pushed his luck as it was.

Better check on his opponent first, though. With that in mind, the blonde slowly got up, his right hand still surrounded by green chakra, healing his battered back.

"You can heal yourself as well? Just how many abilities do you possess, Naruto-dono?" Jura asked. The wizard saint was still wincing from the panther's attack, his muscles twitching ocasionally. Naruto could understand. Whenever he used that in spars with his larger summons, it usually knocked them out.

"Hopefully you won't find out. You've already forced me to use much more than I wanted to."

"Is that a challenge?" The bald man asked again, giving him a challenging smirk despite the pain. Respect had already begun to bud between the fighters.

"Maybe." Naruto replied teasingly, smirking as well.

"Look at that! These two men have already put each other through hell and back these past twenty minutes, yet they're talking like old friends! What incredible sportsmanship!" Chapati Lola might have needed new vocal chords at that rate.

Naruto was already planning on how to get the necessary three seconds to absorb Eternano for Sage Mode when three voices rang out.

"What are you doing Jura? Stop playing around and finish him off already! Send him spinning!"

"Damnit Namikaze, stop holding back and beat him already!"

"Damnit masochist, stop testing him, win now!"

Naruto couldn't help but facepalm. Did Karui really have to call him that out loud? How the hell was anyone gonna take them seriously after that? Really, he was almost tempted to bring up that night they spent together during one of his visits to Kumo, but figured turnabout wasn't really fairplay in this case. Jura had already beaten him up enough. No need to pile another beating on top of that.

"Overbearing as they seem, they have a point. It doesn't seem that either of us can win without using our full strength." The Wizard Saint said.

"Agreed."

Soon, the earth user's presence became overbearing as his full magical presence was unleashed, forming what vaguely appeared to be some sort of shogun.

"Incredible! Jura Neekis's immense magical power has just been fully accessed! Such a massive surge can probably be felt all the way across the city!"

_'Just as strong as your position indicates. You really are incredible Jura-san.' _Naruto thought before spreading his arms and closing his eyes.

Suddenly, another immense presence was felt, matching Jura's. Sage Mode, technically using Eternano even though the natural energy was turned to chakra before entering the body, was extra susceptible to a mage's innate sensing abilities. The pressure immediately took a vague shape as well through some light Killing Intent, this one more matching of a demon. A little nod to Zabuza, whose actions taught the blonde one of the most important lessons of his life. Shaping Killing Intent had been very hard, but it was worth it.

-OoO-

"Incredible... They're both as strong as Gildarts..." Makarov Dreyar muttered in disbelief.

-OoO-

"Wow, Cooler-Laxus really is cooler than Laxus! He's as strong as Gildarts! I really want to fight one of those guys." Natsu yelled out.

"Those two are men! Real men!" Elfman added.

-OoO-

"I feel like I want to punch Natsu for some reason..." Laxus Dreyar muttered as he observed the two titans on the field.

"Damn, those guys are monsters." Gajeel commented, although the bloodthirsty smile on his face said otherwise.

Jellal remained silent. His mind, on the other hand, was buzzing. _'Why would anyone this strong be sent in a diplomatic mission? Something else is going on here.' _Not to mention the man had apparently come in contact with creatures related to Zeref. That didn't usually preclude anything good.

"What's happening?" A voice behind them asked. Turning, they identified the speaker as their remaining team mate, who still looked rather depressed at her loss. Mirajane could understand. Even Jellal's quick victory hadn't really gotten them any fans, considering it happened against someone who was clearly exausted from the challenge. They may have more points than most teams, but they weren't as well regarded.

"The guy who beat you is fighting the Wizard Saint from Lamia Scale, and they've just stopped holding back." Gajeel answered, still smiling. The bluenette looked surprised at that before rushing to the edge of the balcony to get a better look.

-OoO-

"Oh man, that guy is really strong." Sting commented. He then turned towards his fellow blonde. "Aren't you happy, Rufus? I mean, now that we know the guy who beat you is this good, the master probably won't punish you." He really enjoyed getting on his team mates nerves.

A few steps away, a red bipedal talking cat seemed to be having a nervous breakdown over there being two people stronger than 'Sting-kun'.

-OoO-

"I thought your people couldn't absorb Eternano." Jura commented, also taking note that his opponent's eyes now resembled a frog's and he appeared to be using orange eye-shadow.

"No. I said we couldn't use it. Through special training, however, we can learn to absorb it. It turns into chakra before entering the body, so it doesn't allow us to use magic, unfortunately." The ninja explained.

"I see..." The mage said, dismissing the physical changes as side-effects of the absorption.

"In-Incredible! Naruto Uzumaki's presence is just as imposing as Jura's! This is a fight between two men with the power of Wizard Saints!" The announcer yelled, his voice starting to crack from all the shouting he'd done that day.

Both combatants were in a standoff for the seventh time, both their auras still active.

Naruto moved first again, seeing as Sage Mode still had a timer. He blurred through another chain of handseals.

"**Raiton: Denki Shokku (Lightning Release: Electric Shock)**!" He yelled as his chakra was kneaded into black electricity which was quickly directed at Jura in order to eletrocute him. The mage, however, wasn't holding back anymore either, so he showed a level of earth manipulation he hadn't felt he needed to use yet by hardening the ground below him into another pillar which he moved a few inches to the left, getting himself out of the line of fire. A quick gesture turned the pillar into debris that was sent around the electrity and at the blonde, who was already forming a new chain of handseals.

"**Raiton: Dengekiha (Lightning Release: Electric Shock Wave)**!" Numerous bolts of black electricity travelled horizontaly from Naruto's body, cut through the spell and homed in on Jura. The jutsu was too widespread for the previous way of dodging to work again, so the mage had to get creative. Using pillars to get himself upwards would just leave him vulnerable to further attacks and there wasn't enough time to blend into the ground. The lightning would just pierce through whatever defenses he could summon and he didn't trust his agility to be able to dodge all of them. So overpowering them was the answer.

"**Daichi no Chikara (Earth Power)**!" After a movement of his arms and a few seconds of charging up, the ground before parted due to an eruption of magical power that reached around the mage's height and then spread forward in a straight line towards Naruto, causing large explosions when it encoutered the lightning. The lower part of the column continued moving despite that, forcing the blonde to jump to the side.

The jonin was tired of playing games, however. Long-range fighting had already failed, so he decide to try things up close. Getting within range was going to be a problem, but he had ways around that. Ways he was going to put in practice right now.

In quick bursts of white smoke, two swords he'd painstainkly learned how to wield with average skill under his frequent partner Uzuki Yugao's tutelage appeared in his hands from the storage seals written on his gloves. He had no idea how to actually use two swords in battle, but that wasn't what he had brought them out for. Much like Sarutobi Asuma's, and now Sarutobi Konohamaro's, trench knives, these were special swords with actual chakra networks inserted into them during the welding process. He had no idea how that was possible, although fuinjutsu was his main theory, but he did know that, while normal weapons could be charged with chakra, they usually didn't survive repeated applications. These especially welded weapons, made only in Kumo and the Land of Iron and so coveted everywhere else that Asuma's theft of the trench knives during the Third War had earned him a hefty monetary bonus, however, suffered no drawbacks from being charged with chakra. They weren't quite at the level of the famed Kiba Omoi now wielded, which generated its own chakra through processes that had to be complex enough to make his head hurt, but they were enough to do what he was about to. And they were also ridiculously expensive. Kumo merchants were thieving bastards.

"**Rairyū no Tatsumaki ****(Lightning Dragon Tornado)**!" Lightning was charged into the swords as their wielder jumped and started spinning. Wind gathered around him and mixed with the lightning, forming a typhoon in the shape of a serpentine dragon with red eyes whose own momentum forced forwards. While it wasn't as impressive as it would have been if all the usual conditions had been met, the construct was still able to quickly close in on the Wizard Saint, who sent another rock fist at the blonde located at the base of it's neck. The attack shifted, dodging the fist, and the blonde stopped spinning, gathering the condensed typhoon around his swords and swinging it at Jura, whose hasty defense didn't have enough power to stand in the face of the jutsu. The taller man screamed in pain as Naruto returned the swords to their seals, landed and tried shake off the dizzyness. Barely a second later, he'd recovered and was running towards his opponent. Seeing this, the mage momentarily shook off the pain, knowing that letting the blonde gain any kind of momentum was accepting defeat, and ordered a small pillar to rise just as Naruto had closed in. The ninja was hit right in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him, and driving him to one knee just as the same happened to the bald man.

Neither of them stayed down for long, however, as Naruto wasn't willing to let the distance he'd gained be nullified while Jura wasn't interested in moving the battle to close range when long range had served him so well.

The blonde's speed fortunately came through for him again when he quickly managed to close in on his opponent and throw a punch. His aim was true as his right fist buried itself in his opponents gut. Before he could follow up on that, however, his opponent's massive fist hit him in the chin. Another massive punch was dodged and countered with an uppercut. The earth user leaned back to void it, yet the invisible chakra cloak was another matter entirely.

_'What was that?' _He though as his head snapped back from the blow. Wasting no time, the blode used the momentum to spin and drive his left elbow into the taller man's abdomen, knocking the wind out of him. Smelling blood in the water, he prepared another heavy blow.

"**Rasengan (Spiraling Sphere)**!" A sphere a pure chakra was formed in his right hand, ready to be driven into the mage. Said man, sensing the move's power, forced his body to comply with his wishes and cast the one spell that would save him

"**Ganzan (Rock Mountain)**!" The native joined his palms together, prompting a large rock formation to emerge from the ground and surround him, taking the shape of a human clad in an Eastern-looking armor, complete with an helmet and with stone protrusions jutting out, with a frowning look and bright lights visible in the holes acting as its eyes. The sphere slammed into the defense and started drilling into it, but not fast enough to stop the mage from conterattacking. Naruto was about to put his other hand over the sphere in order to add lightning chakra to it when the formation abruptly broke apart, the pieces all being sent at him. The kunai he'd used before being forced to reveal the black lightning was his only salvation, allowing to Hiraishin to safety.

As Jura recovered from the elbow strike, Naruto was getting annoyed. Long range had already failed repeatedly, especially considering that manipulating the earth was much less tiring than generating and manipulating electricity, as it was just manipulating what already existed instead and producing something new entirely. It was so little taxing, in fact, that one of Iwa's main war tactics was stalling with walls of earth for hours and then strike when the enemy was exhausted. This meant that his opponent had used up a lot less energy than he had. And now he'd just been forced to waste the first close combat exchange they'd had!

"I thought your techniques required handseals?" Jura asked, noticeably out of breath.

"Only those that involve turning chakra into something else, the kneading I mentioned. Not the ones that use it in its pure form." The blonde answered, feeling proud of the way he'd outsmarted the other man. Not that said outsmarting had gotten any tangible results.

Damnit, he doubted he'd have a chance to summon any snakes at this point.

Any further thoughts had to be discarded as another wave of debris came at him from all sides. Damnit, it seemed like he'd have to start using more elements. Hopefully just one more would do it. Still, there were a few more things he wanted to try.

"**Raiton: Dengekiha (Lightning Release: Electric Shock Wave)**!" Bursts of black electricity emerged from him, travelling inj front of him, destroying any debris in their path and shielding him from any rocks that came in his direction. Jura turned the ground below him into a pillar and forced it to sink into the floor until his knees were below ground level, making the lightning miss him. Naruto had ways around that.

"**Raiton: Denki Shokku (Lightning Release: Electric Shock)**!" Another spear of black electricity was launched from the blonde's mouth at a seemingly defenceless mage. Sadly, things weren't always as they appeared.

Yet again, the ground below the taller combatant hardened into a pillar that pushed him into safety, with what little was left of the pillar after being hit by the lightning getting fired at him. Naruto was undeterred.

"**Raiton: Kuropansa (Lightning Release: Black-Spotted Difference)**!" For the second time, black electricity took the shape of a panther that stood in front of his creator, anhialating the debris and rushing at Jura, who was still recovering from his flight.

"**Daichi no Chikara (Earth Power)**!" Once again, a burst of magical power reaching up to his forehead appeared in front of the Wizard Saint and rushed at the panther. Naruto, unable to move while using his technique, had his attack avoid the wave, knowing his construct was the faster technique and assuming the pain from his attack would break his opponent's concentration and thus dispel the wave before it could hit him.

He had underestimated his opponent's will. The panther reached its target and unleashed it's payload, but Jura refused to let his opponent get an advantage, so he grit his teeth and forced his attack to travel faster until it reached his opponent.

Pain was all Naruto knew as the burst of magical power reached his shocked form. Sage Mode wasn't enough to protect him from the brunt of the blast.

Both combatants were on the floor, trying to recover from the previous exchange.

"What a match! Ever since their full power was revealed, there hasn't even been time to breathe!"

_'I have to admit, I was not very interested in this match at first.' _Jura thought as he struggled to his knees. _'But now, after seeing his power, I find myself not wanting to lose. My pride as a Wizard Saint... My pride as the ace of Lamia Scale... My pride as a mage... They demand victory!' _ He thought with determination, shakily getting to his feet.

_'When was the last time I was beaten this badly?' _Naruto wondered, barely getting to a knee. _'Damnit, that last one was a hard hit. Still, I can't give up. I have to win. For my pride as a kage-level ninja. For my team. And for the continent. Jura-san, you're powerful, and I respect you a lot, but I can't let you stand in my way. I'll take you down. I have too.' _He thought as he finally got up.

One thing he'd immediately noticed was the breeze. He was feeling a lot more of it than he should. The reason soon became clear: Jura's attack had destroyed his outfit. To be specific, the left pant leg below the knee, the left sleeve and a rather large triangle on the bottom of the coat, jacket and shirt, leaving his skin exposed from around the middle of the waist to a quarter of his torso. Worst of all, in his own mind at least, his coat was now just a piece of cloth that covered his right arm and just a little bit of his back.

Everyone else was focused on other things about him. Namely, the various burns caused by the previous spell. And also his scars. A slash from a sword on his gut, a stab a little lower which had gotten through his lower intestine, various cuts across his arm, the bruises caused by Jura's earlier strikes and numerous scars on his leg from when he'd nearly lost it to shrapnel from an explosion. Even so, he was one of the combat specialists with the least amount of scars due to having Kurama to heal him during the beginning of his career, the time when one usually made the most mistakes and didn't normally have a medic nearby to heal the scars away. Ten years of war had still left their mark on both his body and mind, of course.

Jura didn't focus on the scars, however. He was surprised, yes, but he'd expected something like this when he noticed one of the man's team mates was missing an ear. Not to mention the scar another one had that meant they'd been very lucky to keep their eye. No, what he was focused on was the stylized kanji character for lightning on the blonde's left shoulder.

"Is that kanji... A symbol of the element you use?" He asked, out of breath.

"No... It's a symbol of those who can use... Black lightning." Naruto answered, also panting.

Both panting men stared at each other. Naruto shrugged off his now useless coat.

A rock fist started the eighth round of hostilities. A dog made of electricity destroyed it. The blonde then rushed at his opponent, Hiraishin kunai in hand. Jura countered by making two pillars rise besides him and turning them into debris which was sent at the blonde. The target threw the kunai past the onslaught and made a few hand seals while dodging the first few rocks thanks to the enhanced reflexes from Sage Mode.

"**Raiton: Jibashi (Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder)**!" He yelled out, kneading his chakra into blue electricity which was released all around and in front of him, destroying the rocks and anhialating the pillar Jura had used to attempt to crush the kunai, the mage barely making another pillar below him to escape. The blonde then blinked out of existence, appearing next to the kunai in the air, throwing it on the floor closer to Jura and unleashing another round of bursts of black electricity. Unlike before, from this position only moving horizontally would allow him to dodge.

Jura was able to make yet another pillar to move forward. Naruto quickly used Hiraishin again, appearing around sixty steps away from his opponent, who had recovered his balance after his abrupt ride and had once again sent debris after him. Naruto appeared to get hit, only to suddenly turn into his discarded coat in a puff of smoke.

_'What?' _The taller man though before turning to his left, where he sensed his opponent.

He wasn't fast enough, and was met by a punch to the cheek followed by a kick to the knee. Another punch landed on his torso followed by a knee to the gut. Jura fell to one knee and took the opportunity to raise another small pillar, striking the jonin in the chin, forcing him to take a step back. It was clear that, while Naruto had the advantage of speed and agility, the mage had the advantage in strength.

Jura got up and swung at Naruto, his fist surrounded by rock. The blonde dodged and created a shadow clone which punched Jura in the head before dispelling, the smoke allowing Naruto to land yet another punch in the gut. Naruto mentally grinned as he landed another punch to the face. Now that he had the advantage, he was never letting it go.

His opponent, unfortunately, did not agree, and thus forced another small pillar to rise and hit the ANBU in the stomach just as he was looking for a fifth punch.

"**Haō Gan Sai**** (****Supreme King Rock Crush )**!" Debris formed a rocky formation around Naruto. Usually, that would be followed by the Wizard Saint clapping his hands, causing the stones to explode in their basic components, dealing massive damage to an enemy. However, since Naruto had used Hiraishin to escape the moment he was encased, it would just be a waste of time.

Naruto, on the other hand, was seething at having yet another perfect opportunity ruined. That was it. It was time to reveal another element. 

"**Katon: Zukokku (Fire Release: Intelligent Hard Work)**!" A small fireball was fired from his mouth at the opponent, who, while surprised at seeing the blonde use another element, quickly raised another pillar, already planning to split it and use the pieces against the blonde. However, he was completely unprepared when the small fireball became a firestorm the moment it touched the wall. The fire got past the wall, burning one of the mage's hands before he could avoid it completely. Naruto wasn't willing to let that be it, however. He'd use all five elements if he had to.

"**Fūton: Atsugai ****(Wind Release: Pressure Damage)**!" A tornado-like mass was compressed and than released from his mouth. The pressure was released when it colided with the pillar, destroying it and combining with the fire to encase the mage in a flaming tornado. Just as he'd planned when he'd first used the fire.

"Oh! Naruto Uzumaki just used two more elements to overwhelm Jura yet again! Will he never stop surprising us?" 

Naruto didn't pay attention to that, focusing on getting to his opponent before he recovered. He was successful, landing another three punches before the bald man managed to retaliate with yet another small pillar which quickly buried itself on his gut.

"**Chidori Nagashi (One Thousand Birds Current)**!" A quick chain of one-handed handseals had his right hand surrounded by electricity which was soon released in every direction. The mage was hit by the technique yet again, allowing the blonde to follow up with a few more punches. Jura eventually managed to retaliate, and pressed his advantage with a fist covered in rock moving downwards. A sickening crack was heard all around the arena as Naruto's shoulder gave out under the pressure. Jura froze in surprise as his opponent screamed in pain.

"**Rasengan (Spiraling Sphere)**!" He never saw the rotating sphere of pure chakra that slamed into him until it was too late. Four seconds of torture later, as that was all Naruto would risk even in this state, and the bald man was sent flying into the wall again. Naruto dropped to one knee, trying desperately to heal his dislocated shoulder.

He succeed, mostly. It was good enough to not be much of and hindrance for the rest of the match at least. Kankuro could take care of it afterwards. He was the better medic among them.

Any further dwelling on that subject had to be dropped as he felt his opponent blend into the ground. One thing a battle between two experienced sensors such as them did not have was the suspense of wondering wether your attack took out the opponent or not. They always knew the answer to that.

Nevertheless, while that trick had worked once, the blonde had figured out a way to get past it now.

Another Chidori was formed and then stuck beneath the earth right in front of him. The energy was then released, upturning the ground as it went, bringing with it a shocked mage who was sent flying through the air.

Right above the chain.

A few one handed handseals later and he had replaced himself with the chain, right below his opponent, ready to put into motion his plan for finishing the match.

"**Katon: Ryūen Hōka no Jutsu ****(Fire Release: Dragon Flame Release Song Technique )**!" A huge amount of chakra was condensed on his body and then released as five dragon head-shaped fireballs which flew at the airborn Jura. As a testament to his skill and determination, the man managed to shift his body in midair, dodging two of the fireballs, which flew into the sky. The other three, however, hit him, sending him into the floor. That was it.

Or so it seemed. The mage used his powers over the earth to smother the flames upon landing. It didn't make the landing any softer, or take away the burns he'd already gotten from the explosion. His mantle had been completely burnt away, as well as a large part of his hakama.

Naruto wasn't going to give him any time to recover, however. Running fast, he managed to connect with an axe kick followed by a few more punches. He wasn't letting this chance go, so he made sure to make one handed shadow clones for support with the hand he wasn't using to punch, constantly battering his opponent with heavy strikes.

"After a flurry of heavy blows, Jura seems to be weakening! Is this the end?"

Naruto was so focused on pummeling his opponent that he never noticed when the man put his palms together.

"**Ganzan (Rock Mountain)**!" A rock formation modelled after a samurai, which looked very similar to the man's aura of power, surrounded the man again just as Naruto's fist came at him again. The pain from having his hand hit solid rock distracted him long enough for the formation to break apart, with all the pieces hitting him, knocking away from the panting mage.

Both men were on their knees, bruised and battered from the prolonged contest.

"Both men are struggling to get up, feeling the effects of this extremely physical matchup! What an incredible show they've provided for us!" The crowd seemed to agree, cheering wildly at the combatants to 'Keep it up!'. There even a few cheering for Naruto, too.

Both men slowly struggled to their feet, wobbling unsteadily.

Thunder rumbled in the skies.

Naruto smiled and sent a few kunai with exploding tags attached at his opponent, activating the tags just as they struck the earth wall his opponent had hastily put up. He then used yet another Chidori, sending the electric a charge at the sky. Natural lightning started gathering above his form as he kept his hand raised.

"I don't remember there being a thunderstorm in the weather forecast." Jura commented. "It was the fire dragons, wasn't it?"

"You figured it out already? I'm even more impressed." The blonde answered.

"What are they talking about? Do you undertstand, Yajima-san, Jenny-san?" The announcer wondered.

"Uzumaki-san is very smart." Yajima started. "Those dragon-shaped fireballs Jura-san dodged earlier were hot enough to form an upward movement of air currents which generated thunder clouds."

"The possibility of that happening is probably why he used that attack instead of any of the potencially more damaging ones we've seen him use." Jenny added. "It seems power is not all he has."

As that was said, an enormous dragon-like creature made of lightning descended from the clouds, floating above Naruto.

"I didn't expect to need this, Jura-san." He started. "It took me nearly two years to get the hang of this, but its never failed to end a fight before."

"Then it seems I will have to counter it with a spell that's also never failed me before." The Wizard Saint replied as he joined his hands together, beginning to charge up power.

"We'll see which one is stronger, then." The blonde said, unable to keep the smirk off his face. He could have simply unleashed Kirin the moment the electric charge reched the sky, probably defeating his opponent. However, the technique's main weakness then reared its ugly head: Kirin was one of the best techniques around, but it was so ridiculously hard to master that once you did you couldn't help but brag about it. Plus, he really wanted to see how it matched up against a the best spell of one of Fiore's best. Lastly, even though he made sure to aim away from Jura to make sure the blunt of the technique missed him, thus allowing him to survive, clashing with the man's counter move practically insured that.

Thus he waited until Jura was ready, only a second after Kirin was revealed. Even if he didn't win, such a show of power should discourage any dark mages from paying a visit to the Elemental Nations.

The mage opened his eyes. The construct floated back to the clouds.

It was time.

"**Kirin**!" Naruto kneeled, bringing his lightning-covered hand to the ground, the dragon-like construct quickly following.

"**Meidō Fugaku**** (Rumbling Mt. Fuji)**!" A huge burst of magical power rose up in front of Jura, towering over the stadium.

The power of the earth rose up to meet the descending fury of the heavens.

A thunderous explosion was caused by the clash, electricity and pure magic sweeping all over the stadium as debris was lifted up and strong winds swept over the field. The mages mantaining the barriers that kept the crowd safe were worked to their limits to contain the surge. The very earth rumbled in an earthquake that took nearly every rune knight present to stop from spreading to the rest of the capital. Even so, a few of the closer buildings still shook slightly.

-OoO-

"Naruto!" Kankuro shouted, protecting his eyes with his arms, barely heard over the noise from the explosion. Similar cries echoed from his team mates, all equally woried about their team leader.

-OoO-

"Jura-san!" Lyon shouted, turning his back to the field in an effort to protect his face and Chelia from any debris that may get past the barriers.

-OoO-

"What the hell kind of monsters are these guys?" Natsu shouted over the noise as he and his team tried their best to stand against the wind.

-OoO-

_'Someone this powerful seems interested in Fairy Tail?' _Laxus Dreyar thought. _'I don't like it. Things like that don't usually men anything good.'_

"Hey Laxus, how come you can't use lightning like that?" Gajeel asked once the wind quieted down.

"Because that wasn't regular lightning." He explained, getting blank looks in response. "Usually, lightning spells are performed by vibrating your own magic to generate electricity. However, you also have to direct the electricity a the opponent, which makes it slower. What that guy did was use his electricity as a lightning rod to direct natural lightning at his opponent. Not having to direct every step meant his attack with the full power and speed of a lightning strike. It's incredibly complex. That guy is really powerful."

-OoO-

As the dust settled, the spectators were treated to a sight that was more fitting for a battlefield than a friendly competition. Huge chunks of soil had been upturned and the remains of Jura's attacks that had led to him being hit by the Raiton: Rasengan had turned to rubble. Naruto was lying facedown in the ground, half buried and missing the rest of his jacket and shirt. An odd orange spiral eleongate into a vertical upwards line connected with a downwards line was tattooed on the back of his left shoulder. Jura was lying on his back a little ways away, as motionless as his opponent.

"And with that thunderous clash, it seems as if this incredible match ends in a tie! Lets give it up for these two incredible warriors!" The announcer yelled out, only to be denied by two more yells.

"NO!" Said yells had come from the field, where, shockingly, both combatants were picking themselves up, despite their numerous burns and bruises and the fact that neither of them had anything covering their torsos and arms anymore. More cuts were seen along Naruto's right arm, along with what appeared to be wounds caused by arrows on his left shoulder, torso and right arm. And old burn was also on bhis forearm. Jura, on the other hand, had two spiral shaped scars thanks to the two Rasengan he'd been hit with. Both were bleeding from the mouth, a sign of possible internal injuries. Both their auras had faded.

In short, neither of them seemed to be in condition to move for the next few days, nevermind continue partaking in the most violent match in the history of the games.

The crowd didn't care about that, however, cheering wildly at the thought of the match continuing.

The competitors rushed at each other again, landing punches on each other's faces. Naruto quickly used another Chidori Nagashi as yet another pillar smashed itself on his chin. Unwilling to lose after having come so far, both shrugged off the hits and punched each other again. The hand to hand struggle continued, Naruto being too tired to properly use shadow clones with only one hand as he had done before, each collision between their arms sending out shockwaves that further destroyed the stadium, both warriors putting all they had left into their blows.

Jura managed to take adavantage of Naruto's still tender left arm to score a combination of punches that ended in yet another one covered in rock. Unwilling to let that be the end, Naruto slammed another Rasengan into the man's side. Both were sent flying quite a few feet, yet got up just as fast, fueled by a final adrenaline rush that virtually ensured they would be in quite a lot of pain once the match ended.

They clashed yet again, cracks being heard when another fist covered in rock slammed into Naruto's ribs while a a fireball washed over Jura.

"Someone stop this match before those two kill each other!" Yajima shouted in worry, seeing how much damage both fighters had taken. He was ignored, however, as Naruto healed himself as best as he could while Jura smothered the flames with what little energy he had left. The blonde then created a clone with both hands and rushed at his opponent alongside his doppelganger, punching right after it, performing quite a few combinations before a wall rose between them and separated, dispelling the clone and seriously injuring the blonde. The taller man pressed his advantage, pummeling his opponent with punishing fists, knowing that giving him even a little breathing room could easily allow him to use that teleporting technique again. That would definitely spell his end.

Another fireball prepared with only one hand was fired in his face, causing him to drop to his knees just as his opponent did as well. They didn't let that stop them, however, as soon yet another small rock pillar and lightning spear homed in on their respective creator's opponent, sending to the ground.

Both laid there, backs to the floor, panting in exhaustion and pain.

"You really are powerful, Jura-san." Naruto said. "I haven't been beaten this badly in years."

"You as well, Naruto-dono." The mage replied. "Were we younger, you would have made a good rival."

"You're never too old to have a rival, especially if it's a powerful one."

"Then I guess you are my rival now. I will not allow myself to lose to you." The Wizard Saint said, starting to get up.

"Same here." The jonin said, getting up as well.

Both rushed at each other after a brief moment of rest on their feet. They were both nearly out of energy, so there was no point on using any magic or jutsu. Naruto landed an uppercut as Jura connected with a knee to the gut. The exchange continued, both gaining many more bruises.

"What incredible spirit! Even after twenty-nine minutes of violent combat and despite being out of magical power, these two warriors refuse to give up!"

With the last of their strength, a rock fist and a Rasengan connected yet again with the opponent, sending both flying back yet again. However, the exhaustion both were feeling was obvious as neither attack was anywhere near as strong as it had been previously. The crowd kept cheering them on.

After a few more seconds of struggle, both made it to their feet and punched each other again, unwilling to let such trivial things as lack of magic or chakra defeat them.

Exhaustion and pain were a different matter however, as after a few more blows both took a few steps back, panting and wobbling unsteadily.

They seemed ready to rush at each other again when the gong rung yet again.

"And that's it!" The announcer yelled out. "We' ve reached the thirty minute time limit! This incredible match ends in a tie by time out!"

"We'll have to do this again." Naruto said, his vision getting dark.

"Indeed." Jura agreed, much in the same condition.

Both warriors then passed out due to pain and exhaustion, falling face down at the same time.

-OoO-

Both Team Lamia Scale and Team United Shadows jumped into the field and rushed at their aces, calling their names hurriedly. All eight quickly reached their targets, the medics checking on their momentary patients and healing them accordingly.

"He's got a cracked jaw, two broken ribs, bit his tongue not to mention all the bruises. There's nothing life threatning, but he'll be very sore for the next couple of days" Kankuro reported, his hands covered in green chakra. Considering how little chakra puppeteering required and the fact that he himself mostly stayed in the rear while his puppets did the fighting, honing his control for medical chakra was the next logical step. 

"He bit his tongue, has three broken ribs, a few second and third degree burns and his muscles are spasming from all the electric shocks. He'll be fine in a few days, but he shouldn't fight in the meantime." Chelia said as she healed the Wizard Saint, something she never thought she would have to do. The man always seemed so strong, effortlessly winning every battle she'd seen him in, that she had never thought it was possible for anyone to leave him in such a state.

"I guess we'll have Sherry replace in the meantime." Lyon sighed, relieved that the man he respected so much was out of danger.

"And this is the end of the first day of the X791 Grand Magic Games! Here are the scores!" The scoreboard rose from the floor yet again, revealing the standings for the first day: Sabertooth in first place with nineteen points, Raven Tail in second with eighteen points, Blue Pegasus in third with sixteen points, United Shadows in fourth with fifteen points, Lamia Scale in fifth with twelve points, Fairy Tail B in sixth also with twelve points, Mermaid Heel in seventh with five points, Quatro Cerberus in eighth with four points, Titan Nose in ninth with one point and lastly Fairy Tail A with zero points.

After looking at the score, Kankuro picked up Naruto and team left among a chorus of cheers. They may have only managed fourth place, but thanks to Naruto they had proven their power. It was clear that, had his opponent been anyone else, they would have gotten first place. And that counted for something.

-OoO-

The less travelled members of the guild were still trying to digest the fact that there was now someone on the tournament whom had repeatedly matched Erza when a rather familiar voice spoke. "So that's Quatro Cerberus's Bacchus The Drunken Falcon? Somehow, he's exactly what I expected."

Turning, the members of Fairy Tail saw Team United Shadows, with the speaker, Naruto Uzumaki, standing in the middle, bandages all over his body and face, his left arm in a sling. He was wearing a much more casual outfit, with pants identical to the ones he had been wearing before but now wearing just a simple orange t-shirt rather than the rather elaborate ensemble he'd donned during the games.

"So you saw what he did?" Makarov asked, surprising everyone with how relaxed he seemed to be.

"No, we just passed him on the street and recognized him from the recordings of previous years."

"I see. Is this the time for you to ask those questions you mentioned earlier?" He wondered, getting curious looks from nearly everyone else.

"If that's not too much of a problem." The blonde answered politely, discreetly eying the topless brunette drinking a mug of beer while keeping an arm between her chest and the world. _'Bacchus must have taken that top he was holding from her. Probably without her wanting him to.' _He thought, fighting down the rage that the thought started filling him with. Things like that had stopped being funny after he saw what often happened to female (and sometimes male) war prisioners. After the first time he'd seen it, everyone who served with him knew that relieving their frustrations on prisioners was a good way to get a savage beatdown. The bastard was just lucky Shino had been there to pull Naruto off him. Before those injuries became permanent.

"No problem at all, my boy! Ask away!" Usually, he would have been wary of assassins asking him questions, but there was no way the boy currently speaking with him could be at even a quarter of his usual strength after the battle he'd been in earlier. Besides, even if he was, no assassin would dare try anything in such a public place. Even so, he noticed that quite a few of his children, namely Erza, Laxus, Fried and Gajeel, weren't anywhere near as relaxed as he was.

"We heard you've fought the black dragon." Naruto started, wishing there was a better way to ease into the question.

"Yes?" The elder asked, sobering up slightly.

"We were hoping you could tell us all you know about it." Naruto finished, already dreading the reaction to his question.

He was correct to. Erza ,Laxus Fried and Gajeel went from wary to agressive, as did the rest of the Tenrou group. Bisca and Alzack were no longer glad at seeing their daughter's savior. Everyone else looked ready to fight as well.

"And why do you want us to do that?" The current guildmaster asked, trying to keep his calm.

"It's the reason we arrived in Fiore in the first place."

**-XXXXXXXXXXXX-**

**Author's note: I apologize for the delay, but I had exams and projects until last Wednesday. Combine that with procrastination and a killer hangover on Sunday, and you have nearly a month between updates. Still, I should be able to get back to one chapter per week now.**

**About shadow clones - Unless it happened in a movie or in one of the recent fillers since Deidara's second defeat in the war, which I haven't been able to watch since Crunchyroll got serious about licensing rights, we've never seen anyone but Naruto dispel more than one clone at once, even those who make more than one. Combine that with the fact that having a ridiculous amount of chakra shouldn't allow you to instantly physically be able absorb the memories of dozens of clones dispelling at once without at least a little pain and you have my theory- Kurama protected him from the memory backlash until even his healing was overwhelmed, which was when Naruto blacked out. Notice that every time Kakashi uses shadow clones he's nowhere to be seen for a little while. In my view, he's processing the memories since he isn't as used to the technique. Memories are a tricky thing and they involve a lot. I doubt it could be as simple as canon makes it seem Also, as this chapter showed, it's not that he will never use them, it's just that he will rarely use more than two at a time.**

**Team 8, Neji, Tenten, many other unmentioned - They will only be mentioned when it's relevant. I can't just drop them in out of context. Rest assured, you will find out what happened to them, but only when it fits with the story.**

**Naruto and Ino's relationship - It wasn't really anything special that brought them together. They were the most affected by Sakura's death, so grieving together brought them closer. From there they started interacting with each other more often until they became friends with benefits since both were too busy for an actual relationship. From there it jumped into room mates with benefits and then an actual relationship after eight years, two years before the current story arc. Still, it will be explored a little more of course, considering how important it is for the main character.**

**Jura's non-canon abilities - Azuma, Juvia, Laxus and Kurohebi can blend into their elements, so why shouldn't Jura? As for the rock-covered punches, not only does nearly everyone in Fairy Tail use them, but I honestly though they were canon, only finding out they weren't when I checked Fairy Tail wiki, and I already had most of the match planned by then, so it stuck. As form Earth Power, think of it as Rumbling Mt. Fuji, only not as tall and capable of travelling in a straight line.**

**Peace out fellas.**


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